Created by Ed Gorman
(1941-2016)
Midwestern private eye JACK DWYER is a former cop who decides it’s the actor’s life for him, after appearing in a public service ad. And so he quits the force, figuring being a part-time gumshoe gig would give him more time to pursue his new passion, taking acting lessons, going to rehearsals and all that stuff. He displays considerable compassion, a gentle humour and a surprising amount of humility and humanity as he plies his new trade in a thinly-disguised version of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, while trying to keep his eye on the prize—making a living as an actor.
A good series, well worth checking out; one that takes all the private eye conventions and tosses them in the air.
UNDER OATH
- “an extraordinary novel…”
— Jeremiah Healy on The Autumn Dead
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Advertising exec turned author Ed Gorman, besides writing the Dwyer series, created a few other notable P.I.s, particularly Jack Walsh and Sam McCain, and was one of the better known editors of anthologies in the crime and mystery field. He also co-founded, along with Robert J. Randisi, Mystery Scene Magazine. His fiction output also includes several westerns.
NOVELS
- New, Improved Murder (1985) | Buy this book | Kindle it!
- Murder in the Wings (1986) | Buy this book | Kindle it!
- The Autumn Dead (1987) | Buy the book | Kindle it!
- Murder Straight Up (1987) | Buy this book | Kindle it!
- A Cry of Shadows (1990) | Buy this book | Kindle it!
COLLECTIONS
- The Dwyer Trilogy (1996) | Buy this book
- Collects The Autumn Dead, A Cry of Shadows and “Eye of the Beholder”
- The Jack Dwyer Mysteries (2016) | Kindle it!
Collects New, Improved Murder, Murder Straight Up and Murder in the Wings
SHORT STORIES
- “Failed Prayers” (1987, Mystery Scene Reader #1; also 1989, Felonious Assaults)
- “The Reason Why” (1988, Criminal Elements; also The Mammoth Book of Private Eye Stories)
- “Eye of the Beholder” (1996; included in omnibus edition of The Autumn Dead and A Cry of Shadows)
Respectfully submitted by Kevin Burton Smith.