About Swann’s Down:
When Henry Swann is asked by his quirky partner, Goldblatt, to find a missing psychic who’s swindled his ex-wife out of a small fortune, he just can’t say no. Although he doesn’t actually expect to get paid, he figures it might give him a chance to finally learn more about his partner’s mysterious past. His search takes him into the controversial, arcane world of psychics, fortunetellers, and charlatans, while raising questions in his own mind about whether or not there is an after-life.
While working his partner’s case, he’s approached by a former employer, attorney Paul Rudder, to track down a missing witness who might be able to provide an alibi for his client, Nicky Diamond, a notorious mob hitman who’s scheduled to go on trial for murder he claims he didn’t commit in a week. Swann’s search for the missing witness, who happens to be the defendant’s girlfriend, takes him from Brooklyn to a small beach town across the Bay from Mobile, Ala. But what does she really know and will she even come back with him to testify for her boyfriend?
Advanced Praise for Swann’s Down:
“Psychics, double-crosses, missing persons—Charles Salzberg’s latest Henry Swann book has it all. Swann’s Down is a gritty, no-frills PI novel that brings to mind greats like Reed Farrel Coleman’s Moe Prager and Michael Harvey’s Michael Kelly. Whether this is your first Swann adventure or the latest, you won’t want to miss the brass-knuckle punch that is Swann’s Down. Trust me.”
Alex Segura, author of Blackout and Dangerous Ends
“In Swann’s Down Charles Salzberg proves why he is one of the best mystery authors going.
Salzberg hits you with a masterful combination: The most endearing and authentic investigator you’ll ever meet, working a mystery that grabs you from the start and never lets you go.
From Manhattan to Coney Island to the steamy shores of Alabama, Charles Salzberg delivers a top-flight mystery with his latest Henry Swann outing. In Swann’s Down Charles Salzberg puts you up close and personal with grifters, hitmen, and a secretive woman on the run. You’re not just reading a great mystery, you’re living it.
Tom Straw, author of Buzz Killer and the Richard Castle novels
“Swann's Down gives readers two intriguing mysteries for the price of one, as skip tracer Henry Swann pursues a woman who might alibi a murderer and a psychic who swindled the ex-wife of Swann's partner. Shamus Award-nominated Salzberg does a superb job cutting between the two investigations. I kept turning pages to stay with both chases as the suspense increased to the very end. Whatever is going on, Swann is at the center of this story. His wry wit, quotes from authors and philosophers, genius for questioning suspects, and dark past make him a character readers will follow anywhere as he seeks his quarry. This is another thrilling addition to this excellent series.”
Rich Zahradnick, Lights Out Summer, winner of the 2018 Shamus Award for Best Paperback Private Eye Novel
“Henry Swann dives in where others fear to tread in “Swann’s Down.”This time out, Swann crosses paths with a psycho hitman, a phony psychic and Swann’s mysterious partner, a disbarred lawyer. Who could ask for more? I hope we’ll see a lot more of Swann in the future and that this isn’t Swann’s swan song.
—Paul D. Marks, Shamus Award-winning Author of White Heat and Broken Windows
About Charles Salzberg:
Charles Salzberg is a New York-based novelist, journalist and writing instructor.
His first novel in his Henry Swann series, Swann’s Last Song, was nominated for a Shamus Award for Best Fist PI Novel. Other books in the series include Swann Dives In; Swann’s Lake of Despair, which was nominated for three Silver Falchion Awards and was a Finalist for the Beverly Hills Book Award and the Indie Excellence Award; and Swann’s Way Out.
His novel, Devil in the Hole is a work of literary crime fiction based on the notorious John List murders, and was named one of the best crime novels of the year by Suspense magazine. His novella, Twist of Fate, is included in the noir crime novella collection, Triple Shot, and The Maybrick Affair is included in the sequel, Three Strikes.
His latest novel, Second Story Man, won the Beverly Hills Book Award for Best Crime Fiction in 2018.
His freelance work has appeared in such publications as Esquire, New York Magazine, GQ, Elle, Redbook, Ladies Home Journal The New York Times Arts & Leisure Section, The New York Times Book Review, and the Lost Angeles Times Book Review.
He has written over two dozen nonfiction books including, From Set Shot to Slam Dunk, an oral history of the NBA, Soupy Sez: My Zany Life and Times (with Soupy Sales), and On a Clear Day They Could See Seventh Place, Baseball’s 10 Worst Teams of the Century (with George Robinson).
A celebrated and popular creative writing teacher, he has been a Visiting Professor at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, and has taught writing at Sarah Lawrence College, Hunter College, the Writer’s Voice, and the New York Writers Workshop, where he is a Founding Member. He is also on the local Board of MWA-NY.