Tough Messes brings together eleven short stories featuring a range of characters from varied backgrounds. From a group of mob soldiers trying to mitigate blowback from decades-old deeds in "Moving Day," to a low-level arms dealer trying to stay alive after present-day blowback in "Leaky Pipe," to a man making his bones for a modern crime family in "Quality Time."In "Luxury Goods," old-school grifters set their sights on a hapless mark in a hotel bar. And "Flush" takes rea...

Sean McKenna is a thief, and he's good at it. It hasn't made him rich, but he gets by. More importantly, it keeps him from falling into the dead-end employment trap that's ensnared so many others in Laytons Grove, the small Illinois town where he's spent his life.Reagan McKenna stays clear of her brother's business, but not his life. She would like him to rejoin the family he left many years ago, mostly to save their mother from a broken heart.Sean is content with the life ...

Someone is killing drug dealers.Some in the Midwest town of Stonebridge speculate that a vigilante is behind the violence. Others believe it’s merely fallout from ongoing gang wars.Reporter Jakob Larsen isn’t content with either opinion. When he starts digging for answers, he discovers massive corruption within the police department and a link to a powerful cartel, information that places him and those closest to h...

Someone murdered sixteen-year-old Grace Sutherland and dumped her body along the riverbank.> WINNER: Pinnacle Book Achievement Award - Best Suspense FictionThe news shocks most in the Midwest town of Stonebridge, but for reporter Jakob Larsen, her death dredges up particularly bad memories. Two years ago, his father was murdered, and police have yet to make an arrest.Knowing the pain the gi...

Someone murdered sixteen-year-old Grace Sutherland and dumped her body along the riverbank.WINNER: Pinnacle Book Achievement Award - Best Suspense Fiction**The news shocks most** in the Midwest town of Stonebridge, but for reporter Jakob Larsen, her death dredges up particularly bad memories. Two years ago, his father was murdered, and police have yet to make an arrest.**Knowing the pain the** girl’s family ...