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The Last Policeman

A Novel

Ben H. Winters

$24.99

Paperback

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English
Quirk Books
15 September 2013
"As Seen on Today with Hoda & Jenna

""A genre-defying blend of crime writing and science fiction."" -Alexandra Alter, The New York Times

Winner of the 2013 Edgar Award for Best Paperback Original!

What's the point in solving murders if we're all going to die soon, anyway?

Detective Hank Palace has faced this question ever since asteroid 2011GV1 hovered into view. There's no chance left. No hope. Just six precious months until impact.

The economy spirals downward while crops rot in the fields. Churches and synagogues are packed. People all over the world are walking off the job-but not Hank Palace. He's investigating a death by hanging in a city that sees a dozen suicides every week-except this one feels suspicious, and Palace is the only cop who cares.

The first in a trilogy, The Last Policeman offers a mystery set on the brink of an apocalypse. As Palace's investigation plays out under the shadow of 2011GV1, we're confronted by hard questions way beyond ""whodunit."" What basis does civilization rest upon? What is life worth? What would any of us do, what would we really do, if our days were numbered?"

By:  
Imprint:   Quirk Books
Country of Publication:   United States
Dimensions:   Height: 203mm,  Width: 132mm,  Spine: 22mm
Weight:   289g
ISBN:   9781594746741
ISBN 10:   1594746745
Series:   The Last Policeman Trilogy
Pages:   288
Publication Date:  
Audience:   General/trade ,  ELT Advanced
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active

BEN H. WINTERS is a New York Times bestselling author and an Edgar Award nominee. Ben lives in Cambridge with his wife and three children.

Reviews for The Last Policeman: A Novel

The best genre fiction holds a mirror up to society while also providing edge-of-the-seat excitement, and The Last Policeman did that and more. Las Vegas City Life . .. a heck of a lot of fun. Locus Winters constructs a sturdy, functional, entertaining page-turner. Greg Cook, WBUR.org I'm eager to read the other books, and expect that they ll keep me as enthralled as the first one did. Mark Frauenfedler, Boing Boing ... darkly intriguing... Discover magazine Full of compelling twists, likable characters, and a sad beauty, The Last Policeman is a gem. San Francisco Book Review ...resonant and powerful. Locus This is a book that asks big questions about civilization, community, desperation and hope. io9 ...an entertaining and well-plotted tale. Wired.com's GeekDad I'm in the middle of it and can't put the dang thing down. USA Today's Pop Candy ...sharp, funny, and deeply wise. Slate.com The Last Policeman succeeds both as a mystery, with aquirky detectiveand anintriguing whodunit, and as a piece ofapocalyptic speculative fiction. That s good news. The even better news is that this novel is supposed to be the first of a planned trilogy, with each case occurring closer to the moment when, as Henry repeatedly notes, Bam! And that is something we can anticipate with a good feeling. Sacramento News & Review Winters is masterful in crafting a plausible image of a society that s hanging onto sanity by its fingernails as it teeters on the edge of mass hysteria....This is a novel that grabs ahold of you and doesn t let you go until the very end. The Nashua Telegraph If the next two books are as good as this one, I can't wait for the end of the world. Asbury Park Press ...a solidly plotted whodunit with strong characters and excellent dialogue...This memorable tale is the first of a planned trilogy. Booklist This thought-provoking mystery should appeal to crime fiction aficionados who like an unusual setting and readers looking for a fresh take on apocalypse stories. Library Journal Ben Winters vividly describes the decline of civilization in this pre-apocalyptic story, and spins a wonderful tale...This engrossing story is the first in a planned trilogy. It is a well-written mystery that will have readers eagerly awaiting the second installment. NY Journal of Books The Last Policeman presents a fascinating portrait of a pre-apocalyptic United States. Tor.com Ben Winters makes noir mystery even darker: his latest novel sets a despondent detective on a suspicious suicide case while an asteroid hurtles toward earth. Wired magazine Normally, only Stephen King and Dean Koontz can suck me into a book and not release their stranglehold until I, exhausted from lack of sleep, have turned the last page. Now [Ben Winters] has joined their ranks... The Last Policeman isextraordinary as well as brilliant, surprising, and, considering the circumstances, oddly uplifting. Mystery Scene magazine Absolutely outstanding, I completely loved it from start to finish and I m already rueing the fact that there will only be two more in the series...this gets the highest recommendation I can give. Buy it. In Search of the Classic Mystery Novel A promising kickoff to a planned trilogy. For Winters, the beauty is in the details rather than the plot s grim main thrust. Kirkus Reviews, STARRED review


  • Short-listed for Macavity Award (Novel) 2013

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