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Books

Atlantic Monthly Press
Atlantic Monthly Press
Atlantic Monthly Press

Ella

by Mike Lawson

In this brand-new digitally exclusive novella from Edgar Award finalist Mike Lawson, beloved Washington D.C. troubleshooter Joe DeMarco finds himself face to face with Ella Fields, a cunning, ruthless woman he thought he’d locked up behind bars for good.

Ella Fields was supposed to serve 14 long years, but thanks to a combination of good behavior on her part and prison over-crowding, she was now free after just five years. Well, not quite free, thanks to parole.

If she behaved herself—if she was a model citizen—she would go from being a supervised parolee to a mostly unsupervised one and might eventually be able to live a normal life. A life that might not even be worth living, because she was completely broke and the only skills she had were the ones that had landed her in prison.

So, her future looked grim, and she didn’t know what she’d do in the long term.

But she did know what she was going to do next.

She was going to kill the scumbag responsible ruining her life.

She was going to kill Joe DeMarco.

Praise for the Joe DeMarco Series:

“This time around, Lawson gives his coldly professional D.C. criminal intrigue a surprising heart. Don’t get used to it.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Lawson continues to capture the qualities that have made DeMarco so easy to root for across the past two decades: his abhorrence of injustice and his willingness to get his hands dirty in service of the greater good. Well-drawn side characters and plausible renderings of crooked political dealings provide a boost. Lawson’s winning formula continues to pay dividends.”—Publishers Weekly

“Lawson immerses readers in a world of rough operators and political maneuvering, all of it highly satisfying and suspenseful.”—Dwyer Murphy, CrimeReads

“Alligator Alley is fast-paced, humorous, chilling, and vividly accurate.”—Criminal Element

“Lawson’s toolkit includes great pacing, wry humor, a thorough understanding of criminal thinking and engaging characters.”—Discover Our Coast

“Assured prose matches the two capable protagonists: the crafty DeMarco and the relentless, brilliant Emma. This is perhaps Lawson’s best in the series to date.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“[A]s the plot moves forward, readers may wonder why their palms are sweaty . . . This one sneaks up on you, but it’s a really stunning thriller.—Booklist (starred review)

“The twists and turns keep the pages flying by, with a few moments of levity sprinkled in to break the tension. The conclusion will leave readers both shocked and satisfied . . . This is an easy entry to the Joe DeMarco series and will win Lawson some new fans.”—Library Journal