From "one of crime fiction's most interesting and passionate voices" (Laura Lippman) comes a new "noir crime classic" (Mystery Ink) about one of the most notorious towns in American history.
Reviewing White Shadow, the Associated Press wrote, "It is as gritty as James Ellroy's L.A. Confidential. And yet, the prose is as lyrical as James Lee Burke's Crusader's Cross. With White Shadow, Atkins has found his true voice." And with Wicked City, it is even truer.
In 1955, Look magazine called Phenix City, Alabama, "The Wickedest City in America," but even that may have been an understatement. It was a stew of organized crime and corruption, run by a machine that dealt with complaints forcefully and with dispatch. No one dared cross them-no one even tried. And then the machine killed the wrong man.
When crime-fighting attorney Albert Patterson is gunned down in a Phenix City alley in the spring of 1954, the entire town seems to pause just for a moment-and when it starts up again, there is something different about it. A small group of men meet and decide that they have had enough, but what that means and where it will take them is something they could not have foreseen. Over the course of the next several months, lives will change, people will die, and unexpected heroes will emerge-like "a Randolph Scott western," one of them remarks, "played out not with horses and Winchesters but with Chevys and .38s and switchblades."
Peopled by an extraordinary cast of characters, both real and fictional, Wicked City is a novel of uncommon intensity-rich with atmosphere and filled with sensuality and surprise.
Reviewing White Shadow, the Associated Press wrote, "It is as gritty as James Ellroy's L.A. Confidential. And yet, the prose is as lyrical as James Lee Burke's Crusader's Cross. With White Shadow, Atkins has found his true voice." And with Wicked City, it is even truer.
In 1955, Look magazine called Phenix City, Alabama, "The Wickedest City in America," but even that may have been an understatement. It was a stew of organized crime and corruption, run by a machine that dealt with complaints forcefully and with dispatch. No one dared cross them-no one even tried. And then the machine killed the wrong man.
When crime-fighting attorney Albert Patterson is gunned down in a Phenix City alley in the spring of 1954, the entire town seems to pause just for a moment-and when it starts up again, there is something different about it. A small group of men meet and decide that they have had enough, but what that means and where it will take them is something they could not have foreseen. Over the course of the next several months, lives will change, people will die, and unexpected heroes will emerge-like "a Randolph Scott western," one of them remarks, "played out not with horses and Winchesters but with Chevys and .38s and switchblades."
Peopled by an extraordinary cast of characters, both real and fictional, Wicked City is a novel of uncommon intensity-rich with atmosphere and filled with sensuality and surprise.
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Used availability for Ace Atkins's Wicked City
See all available used copies of this book at: Abebooks UK or Abebooks US
Hardback Editions
August 2008 : Hardback
| Title: Wicked City (Thorndike Large Print Crime Scene) Author(s): Ace Atkins ISBN: 1-4104-0839-6 / 978-1-4104-0839-6 (USA edition) Publisher: Thorndike Press Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
April 2008 : Hardback
| Title: Wicked City Author(s): Ace Atkins ISBN: 0-399-15457-4 / 978-0-399-15457-7 (USA edition) Publisher: Putnam Adult Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
Paperback Editions
April 2009 : Paperback
| Title: Wicked City Author(s): Ace Atkins ISBN: 0-425-22707-3 / 978-0-425-22707-7 (USA edition) Publisher: Berkley Trade Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
Audio Editions
March 2009 : Audio CD
| Title: Wicked City Author(s): Ace Atkins ISBN: 1-4233-4992-X / 978-1-4233-4992-1 (USA edition) Publisher: Brilliance Corporation Availability: Amazon Amazon CA More details... |
April 2008 : Audio Cassette
| Title: Wicked City(Cass)Lib(Unabr.) Author(s): Ace Atkins ISBN: 1-4233-4984-9 / 978-1-4233-4984-6 (USA edition) Publisher: Brilliance Audio Availability: Amazon Amazon CA More details... |
April 2008 : Audio CD
| Title: Wicked City Author(s): Ace Atkins ISBN: 1-4233-4985-7 / 978-1-4233-4985-3 (USA edition) Publisher: Brilliance Audio on CD Unabridged Availability: Amazon Amazon CA More details... |
April 2008 : Audio CD
| Title: Wicked City(CD)Lib(Unabr.) Author(s): Ace Atkins ISBN: 1-4233-4986-5 / 978-1-4233-4986-0 (USA edition) Publisher: Brilliance Audio Availability: Amazon Amazon CA More details... |
April 2008 : MP3 CD
| Title: Wicked City Author(s): Ace Atkins ISBN: 1-4233-4987-3 / 978-1-4233-4987-7 (USA edition) Publisher: Brilliance Corporation Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
April 2008 : Audio CD
| Title: Wicked City Author(s): Ace Atkins ISBN: 1-4233-4988-1 / 978-1-4233-4988-4 (USA edition) Publisher: Brilliance Audio Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
April 2008 : Audio CD
| Title: Wicked City(CD)(Abr.) Author(s): Ace Atkins ISBN: 1-4233-4991-1 / 978-1-4233-4991-4 (USA edition) Publisher: Brilliance Audio Availability: Amazon Amazon CA More details... |
Other Editions
April 2008 : Kindle edition
| Title: Wicked City Author(s): Ace Atkins Publisher: Putnam Adult Availability: Amazon More details... |
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