The Second Girl

Product Description He's a good detective...with a bad habit.One of the best crime novels of 2016! - The New York Times Book Review, BooklistFrank Marr knows crime in Washington, DC. A decorated former police detective, he retired early and now ekes a living as a private eye for a defense attorney. Frank Marr may be the best investigator the city has ever known, but the city doesn't know his dirty secret.A long-functioning drug addict, Frank has devoted his considerable skills to hiding his usage from others. But after accidentally discovering a kidnapped teenage girl in the home of an Adams Morgan drug gang, Frank becomes a hero and is thrust into the spotlight. He reluctantly agrees to investigate the disappearance of another girl--possibly connected to the first--and the heightened scrutiny may bring his own secrets to light, too.Frank is as slippery and charming an antihero as you've ever met, but he's also achingly vulnerable. The result is a mystery of startling intensity, a tightly coiled thriller where every scene may turn disastrous. THE SECOND GIRL is the crime novel of the season, and the start of a refreshing new series from an author who knows the criminal underworld inside and out.Don't miss Frank Marr's next case, CRIME SONG, out now! Review [A] highly original noir...Swinson keeps the outcome in doubt to the end. He also does a fine job portraying the varied neighborhoods of contemporary Washington.-- "Publishers Weekly"An auspicious, and gleefully amoral, series debut...Swinson, himself a former DC police detective, brings the neighborhood and its criminal underworld to gritty life...Marr may be a disaster on legs, but he gets inside a reader's head with ease...It's good news that this is merely an introduction to a character who plans to return.-- "Kirkus Reviews (starred review)"Frank Marr turns the PI mold on its head; he's an addict with a self-serving vigilante streak. But he's also a pretty decent guy deep down who works the streets with expertise, and readers will be fascinated by the day-in-the-life perspective of an unrepentant cocaine addict. A gritty knockout debut that screams for a series.-- "Booklist (starred review)" About the Author David Swinson is a retired police detective, having served sixteen years with the Washington DC Metropolitan Police Department. Before joining the DC police, Swinson was a record store owner in Seal Beach, California; a punk rock/alternative concert promoter in Long Beach, California; and a music video producer and independent filmmaker in Los Angeles, California. Swinson currently lives in northern Virginia with his family, bull mastiff, and bearded dragon.