"So hard-boiled that it makes Mike Hammer and Sam Spade look like running yolks." --
Chicago Sun-Times "An absolute stunner, the toughest crime novel, and one of the most realistic, any American writer has produced." --
The Cleveland Plain Dealer "It's wonderful. The words leap off the page. The plot is fresh. The principal character is original. The style is as clean as a haiku." --
The Washington Post Book World "A bizarre, fast-paced tour of the criminal psyche.... Has a grim authenticity." --
The Philadelphia Inquirer
Andrew Vachss, an attorney in private practice specializing in juvenile justice and child abuse, is the country’s best recognized and most widely sought after spokesperson on crimes against children. He is also a bestselling novelist and short story writer, whose works include Flood (1985), the novel which first introduced Vachss’ series character Burke, Strega (1987), Choice of Evil (1999), and Dead and Gone (2000). His short stories have appeared in Esquire, Playboy, and The Observer, and he is a contributor to ABA Journal, Journal of Psychohistory, New England Law Review, The New York Times, and Parade.
Vachss has worked as a federal investigator