Book description
When former NYPD detective Joe Serpe hit bottom, he just kept on
going. Having lost his career to charges of corruption, his family to
divorce, his partner to suicide, and his fireman brother to the
tragedy of 9/11, Serpe's world is nearly empty but for his cat,
Mulligan. Living in a basement apartment in a blue collar town on Long
Island, Joe spends his days filling tanks with home heating oil and
his nights filling his belly with vodka.
But when a young, mentally challenged man who worked for Joe's oil
company is cruelly murdered, Joe Serpe rediscovers purpose and grasps
for a last chance at redemption.
Along with his former Internal Affairs Bureau nemesis, Bob Healy, and
Marla Stein, a brave and beautiful, group home psychologist, Joe wades
into the world of street gangs, anti-immigration organizations, and
the Red Mafia.
Hose Monkey is a rough and tumble ride through a violent, often
cruel world--a world where it's hard to tell the bad guys from the
good guys without a scorecard. It is a world of murder and extortion,
but one in which an innocent Down's Syndrome girl may hold the key
that unlocks the mystery. At the same time, Hose Monkey is a
story of salvation and forgiveness . . . a tale of justice done.
Called a hard-boiled poet by NPR's Maureen Corrigan, Reed
Farrel Coleman is the former executive vice president of Mystery
Writers of America. He has published twelve novels in three series,
and one stand-alone with award-winning Irish author Ken Bruen. His
books have been translated into seven languages, and the Moe Prager
character in his current series is one of the most engaging in crime
fiction. "His bone-deep world weariness and mordant sense of
humor should enthrall lovers of old-school, tough-talking, loner
private eyes," says Booklist.
Reed is a three-time winner of the Shamus Award for Best Detective
Novel of the Year. He has also received the Barry and Anthony Awards,
and has been twice nominated for the Edgar Award. He was the editor of
the anthology Hard Boiled Brooklyn, and his short fiction and
essays have appeared in Wall Street Noir, The Darker Mask, These
Guns For Hire, Brooklyn Noir 3, Damn Near Dead, and other publications.
Reed is an adjunct professor at Hofstra University, teaching writing
classes in mystery fiction and the novel.
His standalone novel, GUN CHURCH, is exclusive to Audible.
com, and his seventh Moe Prager novel (HURT MACHINE) has been
winning accolades from the likes of Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, and others.
