Laws Of Depravity

"The surprises keep coming in La Salle's twisting debut thriller, in which good and evil aren't always black and white."—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review From actor, director, producer, and author Eriq La Salle, comes the first in a heart-pounding crime thriller series. Every ten years, for the past 30 years, a dozen clergymen are killed, brutally murdered in twisted scenes emulating the deaths of Jesus and his disciples. Now, "The Martyr Maker" has set his mark on New York City. 30 years. 36 priests butchered. His bloodiest masterpiece is yet to come. The Laws of Depravity follows two NYPD detectives and an FBI agent as they race to catch a serial killer before he completes his last cycle of kills and disappears forever. Clerical transgressions at the heart of Spotlight meets the visceral horror of Thomas Harris's Red Dragon, for a gritty, dark story about of how some of the most trusted members of society fail. The Laws of Depravity raises eye-opening questions about faith when the lines between good and evil have blurred beyond recognition. Praise for Laws of Depravity: "Laws of Depravity may be the most engrossing book you read this year, bar none."—Lee Ashford, Reader's Favorites "...an utterly compelling and riveting thriller with echoes of the dark master, Thomas Harris. Here, La Salle also adds a surprising twist by weaving in a spiritual component that raises the narrative to lofty and thought-provoking levels. It's a wonderful accomplishment."—Leonard Chang, author of Over the Shoulder and Crossings "Actor and director Eriq La Salle's intense debut is a modern day parable cleverly masquerading as a crime novel. A muscular, gritty and spiritual thriller."—John Shors, bestselling author of Beneath a Marble Sky, Beside a Burning Sea, Dragon House, The Wishing Trees, and Cross Currents "Laws of Depravity will take you on a heart-pounding ride of vengeance, murder and atonement, never letting you rest until you've reached the final page."—Neal Baer, co-author of Kill Switch and former Executive Producer of "Law and Order S.V.U." "A gritty crime thriller, spiritual quest, and love story all woven into one compelling tale."—Publishers Weekly

"All thriller; no filler—a white knuckled treat." —James Patterson "[A] nail-biter that never sacrifices character for plot." —Publishers Weekly Some people fight the devil inside them... others worship it. NYPD Detectives Phee Freeman and Quincy Cavanaugh are back and working to stop another serial killer. Freeman has his own battles to fight, too, as he navigates his family's refusal to accept his sibling AJ's identity. When AJ is found brutally murdered, he can't step away from the case. Before long, a pattern of shockingly similar ritualistic murders emerges. Freeman, Cavanaugh, and FBI Agent Janet Maclin must join forces with a brilliant but deranged cult leader to hunt down the killer. As the bodies begin piling up, Phee and his partners must rethink their entire investigation—what if their suspect and their so-called expert are actually the same person? Apart from his critically-acclaimed thriller titles, La Salle is a masterful mystery/crime storyteller. He may be best known for his acting roles in productions such as ER, Coming to America, and Logan, but his background in crime fiction was finely honed as he directed and executive produced countless episodes of popular shows such as Law & Order, Law and Order SVU, Law & Order: Organized Crime, CSI: NY, and Chicago PD with Dick Wolf.

'[Her work] defines universal truths about what it means to be human' Barack Obama 'Marilynne Robinson is one of the greatest writers of our time' Sunday Times 'Jack is the fourth in Robinson's luminous, profound Gilead series and perhaps the best yet' Observer Marilynne Robinson, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the American National Humanities Medal, returns to the world of Gilead with Jack, the final in one of the great works of contemporary American fiction. Jack tells the story of John Ames Boughton, the loved and grieved-over prodigal son of a Presbyterian minister in Gilead, Iowa, a drunkard and a ne'er-do-well. In segregated St. Louis sometime after World War II, Jack falls in love with Della Miles, an African-American high school teacher, also a preacher's child, with a discriminating mind, a generous spirit and an independent will. Their fraught, beautiful story is one of Robinson's greatest achievements.

Uncovering the professional secrets of con artists and swindlers in the medieval Middle East The Book of Charlatans is a comprehensive guide to trickery and scams as practiced in the thirteenth century in the cities of the Middle East, especially in Syria and Egypt. The author, al-Jawbarī, was well versed in the practices he describes and may well have been a reformed charlatan himself. Divided into thirty chapters, his book reveals the secrets of everyone from “Those Who Claim to be Prophets” to “Those Who Claim to Have Leprosy” and “Those Who Dye Horses.” The material is informed in part by the author’s own experience with alchemy, astrology, and geomancy, and in part by his extensive research. The work is unique in its systematic, detailed, and inclusive approach to a subject that is by nature arcane and that has relevance not only for social history but also for the history of science. Covering everything from invisible writing to doctoring gemstones and quack medicine, The Book of Charlatans opens a fascinating window into a subculture of beggars’ guilds and professional con artists in the medieval Arab world. A bilingual Arabic-English edition.

A drive-by shooting of an aging white woman at a gang-plagued Kindle County housing project sets in motion Scott Turow's intensely absorbing novel, The Laws of our Fathers. With its riveting suspense and indelibly drawn characters, this novel shows why Turow is not only the master of the modern legal thriller but also one of America's most engaging and satisfying novelists.

From actor, director, producer and award-winning author Eriq La Salle comes the first in a heart-pounding crime thriller series that will leave you on the edge of your seat, frantically questioning the blurred lines between good and evil. 30 years. 36 priests butchered. His bloodiest masterpiece is yet to come. Every ten years, for the past 30 years, a dozen clergymen are killed, brutally murdered in twisted scenes emulating the deaths of Jesus and his disciples. It is the work of a serial killer known as The Martyr Maker. And in 2011, he set his mark on New York City. NYPD detectives Quincy Cavanaugh and Phee Freeman, along with F.B.I. agent Janet Maclin know that they have very little time to catch this monster before he completes his final cycle of killing and disappears forever. But the investigation is made even more difficult when they discover that the seemingly unrelated clergymen are anything but the symbols of godliness they would have their community believe. Praise for Laws of Depravity: Laws of Depravity may be the most engrossing book you read this year, bar none.--Lee Ashford, Reader's Favorites ...an utterly compelling and riveting thriller with echoes of the dark master, Thomas Harris. Here, La Salle also adds a surprising twist by weaving in a spiritual component that raises the narrative to lofty and thought-provoking levels. It's a wonderful accomplishment.--Leonard Chang, author of Over the Shoulder and Crossings Actor and director Eriq La Salle's intense debut is a modern day parable cleverly masquerading as a crime novel. A muscular, gritty and spiritual thriller.--John Shors, bestselling author of Beneath a Marble Sky, Beside a Burning Sea, Dragon House, The Wishing Trees, and Cross Currents Laws of Depravity will take you on a heart-pounding ride of vengeance, murder and atonement, never letting you rest until you've reached the final page.--Neal Baer, co-author of Kill Switch and former Executive Producer of Law and Order S.V.U. The surprises keep coming in La Salle's twisting debut thriller, in which good and evil aren't always black and white. In addition to the absorbing, fast-paced plot that will keep readers guessing until the end, each wonderfully sculpted character has a distinct, lifelike personality.--Kirkus Reviews, STARRED review A gritty crime thriller, spiritual quest, and love story all woven into one compelling tale.--Publishers Weekly