An Expendable Man

Author : Dorothy B. Hughes
Publisher : New York Review of Books
Page : 265 pages
File Size : 49,9 Mb
Release : 2012-07-03
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9781590175095

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The Expendable Man by Dorothy B. Hughes Pdf

“It was surprising what old experiences remembered could do to a presumably educated, civilized man.” And Hugh Denismore, a young doctor driving his mother’s Cadillac from Los Angeles to Phoenix, is eminently educated and civilized. He is privileged, would seem to have the world at his feet, even. Then why does the sight of a few redneck teenagers disconcert him? Why is he reluctant to pick up a disheveled girl hitchhiking along the desert highway? And why is he the first person the police suspect when she is found dead in Arizona a few days later? Dorothy B. Hughes ranks with Raymond Chandler and Patricia Highsmith as a master of mid-century noir. In books like In a Lonely Place and Ride the Pink Horse she exposed a seething discontent underneath the veneer of twentieth-century prosperity. With The Expendable Man, first published in 1963, Hughes upends the conventions of the wrong-man narrative to deliver a story that engages readers even as it implicates them in the greatest of all American crimes.

Author : Margaret Edds
Publisher : NYU Press
Page : 259 pages
File Size : 55,9 Mb
Release : 2006-10
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 9780814722398

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An Expendable Man by Margaret Edds Pdf

How is it possible for an innocent man to come within nine days of execution? An Expendable Man answers that question through detailed analysis of the case of Earl Washington Jr., a mentally retarded, black farm hand who was convicted of the 1983 rape and murder of a 19-year-old mother of three in Culpeper, Virginia. He spent almost 18 years in Virginia prisons--9 1/2 of them on death row--for a murder he did not commit. This book reveals the relative ease with which individuals who live at society's margins can be wrongfully convicted, and the extraordinary difficulty of correcting such a wrong once it occurs. Margaret Edds makes the chilling argument that some other "expendable men" almost certainly have been less fortunate than Washington. This, she writes, is "the secret, shameful underbelly" of America's retention of capital punishment. Such wrongful executions may not happen often, but anyone who doubts that innocent people have been executed in the United States should remember the remarkable series of events necessary to save Earl Washington Jr. from such a fate.

Author : Dorothy B. Hughes
Publisher : Open Road Media
Page : 231 pages
File Size : 45,7 Mb
Release : 2020-06-16
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9781504060783

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The Blackbirder by Dorothy B. Hughes Pdf

A suspenseful World War II–era novel from “the world’s finest female noir writer . . . [featuring] a resourceful spy heroine” (Sarah Weinman, Los Angeles Review of Books). Julie Guilles has escaped to New York from Nazi-occupied France. But that doesn’t mean she’s safe. The German invasion put an end to her glamorous, sheltered life in Paris three years ago, and because she entered America illegally, she has to live in the shadows, a refugee without papers, never quite sure whom she can trust. When an old acquaintance is gunned down in front of her apartment building, Julie worries she could be next. To evade the NYPD, FBI, and Gestapo—basically anyone who might want to arrest, deport, or kill her—she must make her way to Santa Fe, New Mexico, in search of “the Blackbirder.” She’s heard whispers about the trafficker who supposedly carries people across the southern border—for a hefty price. Julie has nothing but a smuggled diamond necklace with which to pay, and before the danger’s over, she may once again have to take a perilous stand in the war that’s plunged the world into chaos . . . Palpably tense from the first page, The Blackbirder is a dark, riveting tale of intrigue and espionage from an “extraordinary” Mystery Writers of America Grand Master (The New Yorker). “Without question this is the best book that Dorothy Hughes has written.” —The New York Times “Sleek suspense . . . grand reading.” —Kirkus Reviews “The master.” —Sara Paretsky, author of the V. I. Warshawski Novels

Author : Dorothy B. Hughes
Publisher : Open Road Media
Page : 232 pages
File Size : 41,6 Mb
Release : 2013-06-18
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9781480426993

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Dread Journey by Dorothy B. Hughes Pdf

A starlet on a transcontinental train fears her director may be trying to kill her in this novel by Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Dorothy B. Hughes. Four years after she arrived in Los Angeles, Kitten Agnew has become a star. Though beautiful and talented, she’d be nowhere without Vivien Spender: Hollywood’s most acclaimed director—and its most dangerous. But Kitten knew what she was getting into when she got involved with him; she had heard the stories of Viv’s past discoveries: Once he discarded them, they ended up in a chorus line, a sanatorium, or worse. She knows enough of his secrets that he wouldn’t dare destroy her career. But he may be willing to kill her. On a train from Los Angeles to Chicago, Kitten learns that Viv is planning to offer her roommate a part that was meant for her. If she lets him betray her, her career will be over. But fight for the part, and she will be fighting for her life as well.

Author : Dorothy B. Hughes
Publisher : Open Road Media
Page : 249 pages
File Size : 46,7 Mb
Release : 2013-06-18
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9781480426955

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The So Blue Marble by Dorothy B. Hughes Pdf

A “delightful . . . nonstop action” thriller from the author of In a Lonely Place—“readers new to this forgotten classic are in for a treat” (Publishers Weekly). At the age of twenty-four, Griselda Satterlee has already lived two lifetimes. A star of the silver screen, she gives up Hollywood after a year, and moves to New York to become a designer. While her ex-husband, Con, is out of town, she is staying in his apartment. Walking back one night, she meets two cheerful young men who want to go home with her—and won’t take no for an answer. David and Danny are twins, and they are the most beautiful men Griselda has ever seen. They are also the most dangerous. They want something from her: a lustrous blue marble, which they insist is in Con’s apartment. Though they leave without hurting her, Griselda knows that next time, they won’t be so amiable. To save herself, she must discover the secret of the marble—a secret with death at its core.

Author : Dorothy B. Hughes
Publisher : Open Road Media
Page : 284 pages
File Size : 43,8 Mb
Release : 2013-06-18
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9781480426962

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Ride the Pink Horse by Dorothy B. Hughes Pdf

During the annual Fiesta, three desperate men converge in a perilous New Mexico town in this “extraordinary” crime novel (The New Yorker). It takes four days for Sailor to travel to New Mexico by bus. He arrives broke, sweaty, and ready to get what’s his. It’s the annual Fiesta, and the locals burn an effigy of Zozobra so that their troubles follow the mythical character into the fire. But for former senator Willis Douglass, trouble is just beginning. Sailor was Willis’s personal secretary when his wife died in an apparent robbery-gone-wrong. Only Sailor knows it was Willis who ordered her murder, and he’s agreed to keep his mouth shut in exchange for a little bit of cash. On Sailor’s tail is a cop who wants the senator for more than a payoff. As Fiesta rages on, these three men will circle one another in a dance of death, as they chase truth, money, and revenge.

Author : Dorothy B. Hughes
Publisher : Penguin UK
Page : 202 pages
File Size : 47,8 Mb
Release : 2010-05-06
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9780141192314

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In a Lonely Place by Dorothy B. Hughes Pdf

Dix Steele is back in town, and 'town' is post-war LA. His best friend Brub is on the force of the LAPD, and as the two meet in country clubs and beach bars, they discuss the latest case: a strangler is preying on young women in the dark. Dix listens with interest as Brub describes their top suspect, as yet unnamed. Dix loves the dark and women in equal measure, so he knows enough to watch his step, though when he meets the luscious Laurel Gray, something begins to crack. The American Dream is showing its seamy underside.

Author : Padma Venkatraman
Publisher : Penguin
Page : 208 pages
File Size : 52,6 Mb
Release : 2019-02-05
Category : Juvenile Fiction
ISBN : 9781524738129

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The Bridge Home by Padma Venkatraman Pdf

"Readers will be captivated by this beautifully written novel about young people who must use their instincts and grit to survive. Padma shares with us an unflinching peek into the reality millions of homeless children live every day but also infuses her story with hope and bravery that will inspire readers and stay with them long after turning the final page."--Aisha Saeed, author of the New York Times Bestselling Amal Unbound Cover may vary. Four determined homeless children make a life for themselves in Padma Venkatraman's stirring middle-grade debut. Life is harsh in Chennai's teeming streets, so when runaway sisters Viji and Rukku arrive, their prospects look grim. Very quickly, eleven-year-old Viji discovers how vulnerable they are in this uncaring, dangerous world. Fortunately, the girls find shelter--and friendship--on an abandoned bridge. With two homeless boys, Muthi and Arul, the group forms a family of sorts. And while making a living scavenging the city's trash heaps is the pits, the kids find plenty to laugh about and take pride in too. After all, they are now the bosses of themselves and no longer dependent on untrustworthy adults. But when illness strikes, Viji must decide whether to risk seeking help from strangers or to keep holding on to their fragile, hard-fought freedom.

Author : Nadifa Mohamed
Publisher : Knopf
Page : 321 pages
File Size : 46,5 Mb
Release : 2021-12-14
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9780593534366

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The Fortune Men by Nadifa Mohamed Pdf

BOOKER PRIZE FINALIST • Based on a true event, this novel is “a blues song cut straight from the heart ... about the unjust death of an innocent Black man caught up in a corrupt system” (Walter Mosley, best-selling author of Devil in a Blue Dress). In Cardiff, Wales in 1952, Mahmood Mattan, a young Somali sailor, is accused of a crime he did not commit: the brutal killing of Violet Volacki, a shopkeeper from Tiger Bay. At first, Mahmood believes he can ignore the fingers pointing his way; he may be a gambler and a petty thief, but he is no murderer. He is a father of three, secure in his innocence and his belief in British justice. But as the trial draws closer, his prospect for freedom dwindles. Now, Mahmood must stage a terrifying fight for his life, with all the chips stacked against him: a shoddy investigation, an inhumane legal system, and, most evidently, pervasive and deep-rooted racism at every step. Under the shadow of the hangman's noose, Mahmood begins to realize that even the truth may not be enough to save him. A haunting tale of miscarried justice, this book offers a chilling look at the dark corners of our humanity.

Author : Dorothy Belle Hughes
Publisher : William Morrow
Page : 328 pages
File Size : 55,8 Mb
Release : 1978
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : UOM:39015000648397

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Erle Stanley Gardner by Dorothy Belle Hughes Pdf

Author : Julio Cortázar
Publisher : Pantheon
Page : 710 pages
File Size : 40,6 Mb
Release : 2014-08-05
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9781101870143

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Hopscotch by Julio Cortázar Pdf

"Cortazar's masterpiece ... The first great novel of Spanish America" (The Times Literary Supplement) • Winner of the National Book Award for Translation in 1967, translated by Gregory Rabassa Horacio Oliveira is an Argentinian writer who lives in Paris with his mistress, La Maga, surrounded by a loose-knit circle of bohemian friends who call themselves "the Club." A child's death and La Maga's disappearance put an end to his life of empty pleasures and intellectual acrobatics, and prompt Oliveira to return to Buenos Aires, where he works by turns as a salesman, a keeper of a circus cat which can truly count, and an attendant in an insane asylum. Hopscotch is the dazzling, freewheeling account of Oliveira's astonishing adventures.

Author : Dan J. Marlowe
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 43,6 Mb
Release : 2016-04-19
Category : Bank robberies
ISBN : 1933586443

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The Name of the Game is Death / One Endless Hour by Dan J. Marlowe Pdf

Two novels from "the hardest of the hard-boiled"--Stephen King.

Author : Dorothy B. Hughes
Publisher : National Geographic Books
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 51,8 Mb
Release : 2012-07-03
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9781590174951

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The Expendable Man by Dorothy B. Hughes Pdf

“It was surprising what old experiences remembered could do to a presumably educated, civilized man.” And Hugh Denismore, a young doctor driving his mother’s Cadillac from Los Angeles to Phoenix, is eminently educated and civilized. He is privileged, would seem to have the world at his feet, even. Then why does the sight of a few redneck teenagers disconcert him? Why is he reluctant to pick up a disheveled girl hitchhiking along the desert highway? And why is he the first person the police suspect when she is found dead in Arizona a few days later? Dorothy B. Hughes ranks with Raymond Chandler and Patricia Highsmith as a master of mid-century noir. In books like In a Lonely Place and Ride the Pink Horse she exposed a seething discontent underneath the veneer of twentieth-century prosperity. With The Expendable Man, first published in 1963, Hughes upends the conventions of the wrong-man narrative to deliver a story that engages readers even as it implicates them in the greatest of all American crimes.

Author : Richard Russo
Publisher : Vintage
Page : 417 pages
File Size : 54,9 Mb
Release : 2011-11-09
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9780307809940

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Straight Man by Richard Russo Pdf

Hilarious and true-to-life, witty, compassionate, and impossible to put down, Straight Man follows Hank Devereaux through one very bad week in this novel from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Empire Falls. • Now the AMC Original Series Lucky Hank. William Henry Devereaux, Jr., is the reluctant chairman of the English department of a badly underfunded college in the Pennsylvania rust belt. Devereaux's reluctance is partly rooted in his character—he is a born anarchist—and partly in the fact that his department is more savagely divided than the Balkans. In the course of a single week, Devereaux will have his nose mangled by an angry colleague, imagine his wife is having an affair with his dean, wonder if a curvaceous adjunct is trying to seduce him with peach pits, and threaten to execute a goose on local television. All this while coming to terms with his philandering father, the dereliction of his youthful promise, and the ominous failure of certain vital body functions. In short, Straight Man is classic Russo—side-splitting, poignant, compassionate, and unforgettable. Look for Richard Russo's new book, Somebody's Fool, coming soon.

Author : Charles Willeford
Publisher : Library of America
Page : 167 pages
File Size : 43,7 Mb
Release : 2017-11-07
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9781598535723

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Pick-Up by Charles Willeford Pdf

First published as an unheralded paperback original, Pick-Up is an authentic underground classic, an explosive bulletin from the urban underbelly of mid-1950s America. It was Charles Willeford’s second novel, after a rough and wandering earlier life that had taken him from Depression-era hobo camps and soup kitchens to wartime battlefields. The unblinking story of two lost and self-destructive drifters—a failed painter working as a counterman in a cheap diner and a woman in flight from domestic violence—trying to find a place for themselves in the back streets of San Francisco, Pick-Up is hardboiled writing at its nihilistic best: Willeford’s preferred title for the book was Until I Am Dead. Its bleak vision of life beyond the edge is haunted by rape, racism, alcoholism, suicide, and inescapable poverty, yet shot through with a tenderness and compassion sustained against all odds in a society offering few breaks to its outcasts and misfits. Pick-Up’s many twists and violent turns culminate in an ending that continues to surprise, confirming it as what critic Woody Haut has called “a razor-sharp narrative that rips open the genre.”