Readers' rating:
Published May 2008
288 pages
Genre: Mysteries
Publication Information
Homicide cop Bobby Dunston's daughter has been kidnapped, taken in broad daylight on a city street in the middle of September. The kidnappers demand a million dollars and force Dunston to get the ransom from his friend McKenzie. It soon becomes apparent to the two of them that one of the kidnappers is childhood pal Scottie, a once aspiring drummer now gone astray, and that the kidnapping is payback for "crimes" committed in their past.
McKenzie, former cop and now unlicensed P.I., handles the ransom drop-off and the child is returned safely. But Scottie is found dead - brutally murdered - and someone has taken out an open contract on McKenzie, using his own money to pay for it. Dodging attempts on his life from assassins of all shapes and sizes, McKenzie now has precious little time to uncover the mastermind behind it all if he's going to survive.
"Starred Review. Against a realistic Minnesota backdrop, this homage to Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer raises cutting questions about crime and punishment and today's price of friendship and loyalty." - Publishers Weekly.
This information about Madman on a Drum was first featured
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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
David Housewright has worked as a journalist covering both crime and sports (sometimes simultaneously), advertising copywriter and creative director, and a writing instructor. He won the Edgar Award for his first novel, Penance, in 1996, the Minnesota Book Award for his second, Practice to Deceive, in 1998, and Tin City, the second McKenzie novel, was nominated for the same prize. He lives in St. Paul, Minnesota.
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