California Bear
A Novel
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3.9 • 31 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
NATIONAL BESTSELLER
This "fresh, exciting, and brilliantly unpredictable" thriller (James Patterson) from a "great storyteller" (Michael Connelly) follows four unlikely vigilantes who pit themselves against the villain behind California’s coldest case when they decide to take justice into their own hands.
NONE OF YOU ARE SAFE
“KILLER”: Jack Queen has been exonerated and freed from prison thanks to retired LAPD officer Cato Hightower. But when guilt gnaws at Jack, he admits: “I actually did it.” To which Hightower responds: “Yeah, no kidding.” You see, the ex-cop has a special job in mind for the ex-con…
THE GIRL DETECTIVE: Fifteen-year-old Matilda Finnerty has been handed a potential death sentence in the form of a leukemia diagnosis. But that’s not going to stop her from tackling the most important mystery of her life: Is her father guilty of murder?
GENE JEANIE: Jeanie Hightower mends family trees for a living, but the genealogist is unable to repair her own marriage. And her soon-to-be ex may have entangled her in a scheme that has drawn the bloody wrath of…
THE BEAR: A prolific serial killer who disappeared forty years ago, who is only now emerging from hibernation when the conditions are just right. And this time, the California Bear is not content to hunt in the shadows…
From two-time Edgar nominee Duane Swierczynski, California Bear is clever, moving, and surprising as it takes aim at the true crime industry, Hollywood, justice, and the killers inside us all.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Swierczynski delivers his best work since the Charlie Hardie series in this virtuoso serial killer thriller. Jack Queen was convicted of murdering real estate tycoon Julian Church by running him down in a car while drunk, an apparent act of revenge for Church's involvement in the death of Queen's wife. Ten years into Queen's sentence, ex-cop Cato Hightower springs Queen from prison, hoping he'll be grateful enough for his new freedom to aid Hightower in an unofficial investigation. Hightower is convinced he's identified the "California Bear," a serial killer who's eluded justice for nearly 40 years and hasn't struck in 30. His suspect is Christopher Albin Dixon, another former cop whom Hightower plans to extort—with the help of Queen's muscle—for a share of the money he believes Dixon's receiving from a deal with a streaming service to make a documentary about the California Bear's killings. Queen has other priorities, such as providing support for his precocious 14-year-old daughter, Matilda, a brilliant young sleuth whose dedication to exonerating her dad has just been sidelined by a devastating cancer diagnosis. Swierczynski is brilliant at fooling even savvy readers, and his jaw-dropping twists never compromise his exceptional character development. This is a tour de force.
