Synopses & Reviews
Claire DeWitt is not your average private investigator. She has brilliant skills of deduction and is an ace at discovering evidence. But Claire also uses her dreams, omens, and mind-expanding herbs to help her solve mysteries, and relies on
Détection--the only book published by the great and mysterious French detective Jacques Silette before his death.
The tattooed, pot-smoking Claire has just arrived in post-Katrina New Orleans, the city she's avoided since her mentor, Silette's student Constance Darling, was murdered there. Claire is investigating the disappearance of Vic Willing, a prosecutor known for winning convictions in a homicide-plagued city. Has an angry criminal enacted revenge on Vic? Or did he use the storm as means to disappear? Claire follows the clues, finding old friends and making new enemies--foremost among them Andray Fairview, a young gang member who just might hold the key to the mystery.
Review
"Terrific. I love this book! Absolutely love it. This is the first fresh literary voice I've heard in years. Sara Gran recombines all the elements of good, solid story-telling and lifts something original from a well-loved form."
--Sue Grafton Sue Grafton
Review
“Beautifully written in a tight, quirky style that distinguishes Gran as one of the more original writers working today.”
—Associated Press BookPage
Review
“The mystery captures post-Katrina New Orleans like no other novel yet has . . .DeWitts mesmerizing character and memorable voice take your breath away.”
—The Times-Picayune The Atlantic
Review
“The most unusual, intelligent thriller I have read for a long time.”
—Express (UK) New York Times
Review
“The mystery of Vic Willings disappearance pulls you in, but Grans enticing characters will keep you hooked.”
—BookPage Philadelphia CityPaper
Review
“With Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead, Gran elevates the detective story as literature and brings together a sophisticated mystery, a witty, antagonistic private eye, and a city she knows too well.”
—The Atlantic Salon
Review
“The dead-eyed face of post-Katrina New Orleans that stares out from Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead is every bit as raw as the battered mug [Gran] drew of 1950s Brooklyn in Dope. But hope is on the way in the exotic person of Claire DeWitt. . . Claire is a charmer, but theres nothing cute about her paranormal visions of a city living in torment.”
—New York Times Publishers Weekly
Review
“A high-proof Nancy Drew drawn straight from the tradition of an opiated Holmes.”
—Philadelphia CityPaper
Review
“delicious and addictive.”
—Salon
Review
“Provides narration that is both engaging and entertaining. . . . Carol Monda perfectly renders Claires sarcastic repartee and keeps this tightly paced narrative moving quickly.”
—Publishers Weekly
Synopsis
A new series from Sara Gran, "a latter-day Raymond Chandler" (Glamour).
About the Author
SARA GRAN is the author of two critically acclaimed novels, Come Closer, a psychological thriller and Dope, a noir homage. A former bookseller and native of Brooklyn who lived in New Orleans during Katrina, she now lives in Northern California.CAROL MONDA is a two-time Audie® Award-winning narrator, with over 15 years of experience. She is also a veteran actress and voiceover artist for stage, radio, television, and film.