Hardscrabble Road (Gregor Demarkian Series #21) » (Reprint)

Jane Haddam is the author of numerous novels, many featuring Gregor Demarkian. A finalist for both the Anthony and Edgar Awards, she lives in Litchfield County, Connecticut.

A famous rabble-rouser.

When Philadelphia's right-wing-ranting radio host Drew Harrigan is arrested for possession of illegal pain killers, he implicates a homeless man, Sherman Markey, in the drug buys, and is soon checked into a locked rehabilitation facility.

A celebrity cause.

While Harrigan is away, beyond the reach of the media and the court, Markey sues him for libel and slander. With the help of a legal advocacy group, Markey is due to have his day in court…until he disappears into the city streets.

A PROVOCATIVE scandal with murderous results….

The nuns at the shelter haven't seen him. The civil lawyers can't find him. Now it's time for retired FBI agent Gregor Demarkian to step into the case—one that will lead Demarkian down a slippery slope of dark deeds and chilling revelation…with a killer lying in wait for anyone who dares to cross his path.

"A captivating literate mystery."—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"This latest Demarkian tale is spot-on… there's no slowing this sleuth down."—Rocky Mountain News

Publishers Weekly

Credible characters and an intriguing plot laced with both humor and political commentary lift Haddam's outstanding 21st Gregor Demarkian novel to feature the retired FBI agent known as the Armenian-American Hercule Poirot (after 2005's The Headmaster's Wife). Like Agatha Christie or P.D. James, Haddam uses multiple perspectives to portray her central character-Drew Harrigan, a rabid right-wing Philadelphia radio host who will remind many of Rush Limbaugh. Harrigan has been arrested on drug charges, and his conviction would complicate many lives. His alleged supplier, an alcoholic homeless man named Sherman, is also in big trouble. After Sherman turns up apparently poisoned, Demarkian joins the police and DA in investigating an eclectic group of suspects including a lefty academic, Harrigan's producer and Harrigan's sister, who's a member of a religious order. Those new to Haddam will snap up her earlier work based on this captivating literate mystery, which shows how well a classic fair play whodunit can work in a contemporary setting. (May) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.