The Last Kind Words: A Novel
Advance praise forThe Last Kind Words “Perfect crime fiction . . . a convincing world, a cast of compelling characters, and above all a great story.”—Lee Child,New York Timesbestselling author of61 Hours “For the first time sinceThe Godfather,a family of criminals has stolen my heart. This is a brilliant mix of love and violence, charm and corruption. I loved it.”—Nancy Pickard, bestselling author ofThe Scent of Rain and Lightning “You don’t choose your family. And the Rand clan, a family of thieves, is bad to the bone. But it’s a testimony to Tom Piccirilli’s stellar writing that you still care about each and every one of them.The Last Kind Wordsis at once a dark and brooding page-turner and a heartfelt tale about the ties that bind.”—Lisa Unger,New York Timesbestselling author ofDarkness, My Old Friend “Piccirilli straddles genres with the boldness of the best writers today, blending suspense and crime fiction into tight, brutal masterpieces.”—James Rollins,New York Timesbestselling author ofThe Devil Colony “Tom Piccirilli’s sense of relationships and the haunting power of family lifts his writing beyond others in the genre.The Last Kind Wordsis a swift-moving and hard-hitting novel.”—Michael Koryta, Edgar Award–nominated author ofThe Ridge “A stunning story that ranges far afield at times but never truly leaves home, a place where shadows grow in every corner . . . superbly told, with prose that doesn’t mess about or flinch from evil.”—Daniel Woodrell, PEN USA award–winning author ofWinter’s Bone “There’s more life inThe Last Kind Words(and more heartache, action, and deliverance) than in any other novel I’ve read in the past couple of years.”—Steve Hamilton, Edgar Award–winning author ofThe Lock Artist “You’re in for a treat. Tom Piccirilli is one of the most exciting authors around. He writes vivid action that is gripping and smart, with characters you believe in and care about.”—David Morrell,New York Timesbestselling author ofFirst Blood“Mystic Riverset the bar for classic literary mystery, andThe Last Kind Wordsis a novel on the same superb playing field. Compassionate, fascinating, and with an adrenaline narrative that is as gripping as it is moving, this book is pure alchemy.”—Ken Bruen, Shamus and Macavity Award–winning author ofThe GuardsandHeadstone “Piccirilli’s family of heartbroken thieves, bound by love, secrets, and family codes, kept me turning the pages until the very end. It pained me to put this book down at night. Tom Piccirilli is the leader of a new pack of writers combining the best elements of crime, mystery, and literary fiction in a way that would make Chandler proud. I loved this book, and can’t wait for the sequel.”—Sara Gran, author ofClare DeWitt and the City of the Dead“Tom Piccirilli’sThe Last Kind Wordsis a story born of the dark legacies of family violence and loss. With vivid prose and palpable urgency, it succeeds utterly as a crime tale. At the same time, it reminds us that crimes can emanate from both the darkest and lightest of places, and renders the heart of a damaged family with clear-eyed yet fervent beauty.”—Megan Abbott, author ofThe End of Everything“Piccirilli has created a world so real you can smell the mildew.  After writing crime and horror for presses well known and obscure, he deserves a breakout novel and this just might be it.” —Booklist(starred review)“A searing examination of the ties that bind brother to brother…a soulful, shivery edge to this tale of an unhappy family that’s assuredly unhappy in its own special way.” —Kirkus“[A] sharp slice of contemporary noir….Piccirilli’s mastery of the hard-boiled idiom is pitch perfect, particularly in the repartee between his characters, while the picture he paints of the criminal corruption conjoining the innocent and guilty in a small Long Island community is as persuasive as it is seamy.  Readers who like a bleak streak in their crime fiction will enjoy this well-wrought novel.” —Publishers Weekly