{"title":"Les Edgerton","description":"\u003cp\u003eDive into the gritty, unflinching world of Les Edgerton. A master of crime fiction and noir, Edgerton's tales are perfect for fans of James Ellroy and Jim Thompson. Explore his raw and powerful novels.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"hooked-book-les-edgerton-9781582974576","title":"Hooked","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe road to rejection is paved with bad beginnings. Agents and editors agree: Improper story beginnings are the single biggest barrier to publication. Why? If a novel or short story has a bad beginning, then no one will keep reading. It's just that simple.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eHooked\u003c\/i\u003e, author Les Edgerton draws on his experience as a successful fiction writer and teacher to help you overcome the weak openings that lead to instant rejection by showing you how to successfully use the ten core components inherent to any great beginning. You'll find: \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDetailed instruction on how to develop your inciting incident\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eKeys for creating a cohesive story-worthy problem\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTips on how to avoid common opening gaffes like overusing backstory\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eA rundown on basics such as opening scene length and transitions\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eA comprehensive analysis of more than twenty great opening lines from novels and short stories\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e Plus, you'll discover exclusive insider advice from agents and acquiring editors on what they look for in a strong opening. With \u003ci\u003eHooked\u003c\/i\u003e, you'll have all the information you need to craft a compelling beginning that lays the foundation for an irresistible story ","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49512928739601,"sku":"GOR001754618","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":49724094021905,"sku":"CIN1582974578VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50038016508177,"sku":"CIN1582974578G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ WELL_READ \/ SBYB","offer_id":50236876620049,"sku":"CIN1582974578A","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ LIKE_NEW \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":50275495575825,"sku":"GOR007039118","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ LIKE_NEW \/ SBYB","offer_id":51829741191441,"sku":"CIN1582974578LN","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1582974578.jpg?v=1751213811"},{"product_id":"finding-your-voice-book-les-edgerton-9781582971735","title":"Finding Your Voice","description":null,"brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49527209394449,"sku":"GOR003372704","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ WELL_READ \/ SBYB","offer_id":49790049747217,"sku":"CIN1582971730A","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":49795263136017,"sku":"CIN1582971730G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":50921262154001,"sku":"GOR006613502","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":52782580203793,"sku":"CIN1582971730VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1582971730.jpg?v=1751433668"},{"product_id":"bitch-book-les-edgerton-9780989932301","title":"The Bitch","description":"In And Building Something, Kyla's low voice conceals a secret world tattooed across her body. But when the rain and the revival come to the dusty town of West Medford, it unleashes a flood of truth that cannot be contained. Melody carries the reader through a complex family history that spans generations, sending Leslie, Preacher Boy, and the entire Durpree plantation headlong into a battle against the cultural misgivings of the past. Meanwhile, Isaac had disappeared again, his mother was desperate, and Christopher was lost in dreams of river boats, the Congo, and his father's approval. Three stories, three families--all struggling against the ceaseless tide of the past while desperate to change the future. This Was Not The Truth and Other Collected Stories weaves its tales around the common themes of race, family, and trust.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49563470332177,"sku":"GOR013752656","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0989932303.jpg?v=1751046167"},{"product_id":"hard-times-book-les-edgerton-9781952427084","title":"Hard Times","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn 1930s East Texas, fourteen-year-old Amelia Laxault's father insists she marry Arnold Critchin, a local boy who assaulted her on their first date. When Arnold's alcohol-fueled brutality devastates their family, his ineptitude with crops destroys their farm, and his poorly run moonshine business lands him in prison, Amelia struggles to feed her four children as the Depression worsens and a secret from her past looms large. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThree hundred miles away, Lucious Tremaine tangles with a white police officer. Fleeing to Houston, a second altercation leaves him with a gunshot wound. Desperate and weak, he makes his way into the backwoods. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs Lucious encounters increasing obstacles and Amelia's challenges escalate with Arnold's return from prison-and a visit from her first love, who is now the local sheriff- an explosion looms. Will Lucious make it to Houston? Can Amelia save her children from both starvation and Arnold's increasing, vengeful violence? As the odds stack up and the food runs out, Amelia must summon all her courage, strength, and ingenuity to attempt to save her family.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50326820323601,"sku":"CIN1952427088G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50402794078481,"sku":"CIN1952427088VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52690691916049,"sku":"NLS9781952427084","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52756981612817,"sku":"NIN9781952427084","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1952427088.jpg?v=1751348374"},{"product_id":"rapist-book-les-edgerton-9780985578626","title":"The Rapist","description":null,"brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50369944453393,"sku":"CIN0985578629G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0985578629.jpg?v=1751140980"},{"product_id":"hard-times-book-les-edgerton-9781952427091","title":"Hard Times","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn 1930s East Texas, fourteen-year-old Amelia Laxault's father insists she marry Arnold Critchin, a local boy who assaulted her on their first date. When Arnold's alcohol-fueled brutality devastates their family, his ineptitude with crops destroys their farm, and his poorly run moonshine business lands him in prison, Amelia struggles to feed her four children as the Depression worsens and a secret from her past looms large. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThree hundred miles away, Lucious Tremaine tangles with a white police officer. Fleeing to Houston, a second altercation leaves him with a gunshot wound. Desperate and weak, he makes his way into the backwoods. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs Lucious encounters increasing obstacles and Amelia's challenges escalate with Arnold's return from prison-and a visit from her first love, who is now the local sheriff- an explosion looms. Will Lucious make it to Houston? Can Amelia save her children from both starvation and Arnold's increasing, vengeful violence? As the odds stack up and the food runs out, Amelia must summon all her courage, strength, and ingenuity to attempt to save her family.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50396448358673,"sku":"CIN1952427096VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52121441173777,"sku":"NLS9781952427091","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52757758804241,"sku":"NIN9781952427091","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1952427096.jpg?v=1751029342"},{"product_id":"adrenaline-junkie-book-les-edgerton-9781948235419","title":"Adrenaline Junkie","description":null,"brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ -","offer_id":51059966968081,"sku":"","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51059970605329,"sku":"NIN9781948235419","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52480675807505,"sku":"NLS9781948235419","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1948235412.jpg?v=1751315754"},{"product_id":"lagniappe-book-les-edgerton-9781943402854","title":"Lagniappe","description":"Twenty years after the publication of his first short story collection, \u003ci\u003eMonday's Meal\u003c\/i\u003e, Les Edgerton delivers the goods once again in this collection of harrowing tales of outlaws, ex-cons, frightened men and women, rap-partners throwing back tall boys and taller tales, children forced to become killers, stabbings and shootings, bad asses and sad asses...a wide-ranging collection of distinct and memorable characters who will exhibit a kind of wisdom not obtainable from the halls of academia. This is not a gathering of people contemplating their navels but real people facing the consequences of their actions...and it ain't often pretty. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003ePraise for Les Edgerton... \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eLes Edgerton has swiftly become my favorite crime writer. Original voice, uncompromising attitude and a pure hardboiled style leap him to the front ranks of my reading list. He will become legendary. -Joe R. Lansdale, author of \u003ci\u003eParadise Sky\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Bottoms\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eEdge of Dark Water\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Thicket\u003c\/i\u003e, and the Hap and Leonard series, the books behind the TV series of the same name, and many others \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eReading Les Edgerton's stories is like listening to those old World War II broadcasts from the London blitz, with the reporter crouching under a restaurant table, microphone in hand, while the bombs drop on the city and the ceiling caves in. Edgerton reports on the world and the news is not good. There's a kind of wacky wisdom in these bulletins from the underside of life; the stories are full of people you hope never move in next door, for whom ordinary life is an impossible dream. This is good fiction; Edgerton writes lean and nasty prose. -Dr. Francois Camoin, Director, Graduate School of English, University of Utah and author of \u003ci\u003eBenbow and Paradise\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eLike Love\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBut Not Exactly\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eDeadly Virtues\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe End of the World Is Los Angeles\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eWhy Men Are Afraid of Women\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eLes Edgerton is the new High King of Noir. -Ken Bruen, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Emerald Lie\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Guards\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003ePimp\u003c\/i\u003e, and many others","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52137692135697,"sku":"NLS9781943402854","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9781943402854.jpg?v=1757558677"},{"product_id":"genuine-imitation-plastic-kidnapping-book-les-edgerton-9781937495794","title":"The Genuine, Imitation, Plastic Kidnapping","description":"A mix of Cajun gumbo, a couple tablespoons of kinky sex and a dash of unusual New Orleans settings and you wind up with Les Edgerton's latest romp fest  Pete Halliday is busted out of baseball for gambling and travels to New Orleans to make his fortune hustling. Five years later, he's deep in debt to bookie and in cahoots with Tommy LeClerc, a Cajun with a tiny bit of Indian blood who considers himself a red man. Tommy inveigles a reluctant Pete into one scheme after another, the latest a kidnapping scheme where they'll snatch the Cajun Mafia King and hold his amputated hand for some serious jack. Along the way, Pete is double-crossed by Tommy and falls in love with part-time hooker and full-time waitress Cat Duplaisir. With both the Italian and Cajun mobs after them, a chase through Jazz Fest, a Tourette's outbreak in a black bar and other zany adventures, all seems lost. Fans of Tim Dorsey's character Serge Storms, and readers who enjoy Christopher Moore and Carl Hiaasen will enjoy this story. A hard-driving, relentless story with grab-you-by-the-throat characters.-Grant Blackwood, New York Times bestselling author The Genuine, Imitation, Plastic Kidnaping is not for the faint of heart, and that's just one of its selling points. If you like crime fiction that cracks wise while offering a peek into the darker recesses, this is the book for you. -Bill Fitzhugh, author of Pest Control and The Exterminators ...a dark crime comedy that will have you laughing from page one. It crackles with manic energy and mad thrills. If you're looking for a different kind of edgy crime novel, this is the one to grab. -Bill Crider, author of the Sheriff Dan Rhodes Mysteries Les Edgerton's latest book is the real deal, and has everything to keep you turning the pages. It's a caper, full of fun and high-jinx, but it's also bitter-sweet, engendering a full range of emotions. You'll smile, you'll wince, you'll laugh out loud, and sometimes you'll even cringe, but you'll come away from the read feeling thoroughly satisfied and entertained. A terrific read. -Matt Hilton, author of the best-selling Joe Hunter thrillers","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":52403847397649,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52403847954705,"sku":"NLS9781937495794","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9781937495794.jpg?v=1758762316"},{"product_id":"just-like-that-book-les-edgerton-9781946502094","title":"Just Like That","description":"Jake and his pal Bud's journey begins six months after he is released on parole and is occasioned when his girlfriend Donna dumps him and aborts their child. After a suicide attempt where the Norelco shaver cord he used to hang himself breaks, on an impulse-everything in Jake's life happens just like that-he calls up Bud, who lives by the same credo, and the two take off with no particular destination in mind. They're just going south-somewhere where it's warm. An hour before they leave, Jake on another impulse, holds up a convenience store to get some traveling money. Ultimately, they end up in New Orleans and then Lake Charles, Louisiana and from there, back to Indiana. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAlong the way are many watercooler moments and near the end Jake takes a fall when he is caught burglarizing a bar back in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, gets shot in the leg and is returned to Pendleton where he kills the inmate he had a nasty encounter with during his first stay in prison. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eJust Like That is based on an actual trip the author took with an ex-prison cellmate under similar circumstances as protagonist Jake Mayes does in the narrative. The scenes in Pendleton are also based on true experiences he had while incarcerated. Approximately 85% of the novel is taken from real life. Portions of the book have previously appeared as short stories in the literary magazines Murdaland, Flatmancrooked, and High Plains Literary Review, the latter of which was nominated for a Pushcart Prize and was selected for inclusion in Houghton Mifflin's \u003ci\u003eBest American Mystery Stories, 2001\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003ePraise for JUST LIKE THAT: \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eEdgerton's got a story to tell you so get ready; it's coming at you fast. Get ready... -Linwood Barclay, international bestseller \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eEdgerton draws memorable portraits of these dangerous and unpredictable characters. -Library Journal \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eJust Like That\u003c\/i\u003e is yet another Les Edgerton winner. In his prison memoir, Edgerton conjures up in honest, Bukowski-esque prose a mad dog life lived behind and beyond the bars of institutional correctional facilities. Literature's version of Johnny Cash, America has yet another gifted bard to sing the blues of time served. I have long believed Edgerton to be an American original, who has for too long remained one of our best kept literary secrets. -Cortright McMeel, author of \u003ci\u003eShort\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eJust Like That\u003c\/i\u003e has it all. Great dialogue, whipcrack scenes and meaty characters haul you along on a hardboiled crime road-trip worthy of the Elmore Leonard and Joe R Lansdale. A shot to the heart as well as the head, \u003ci\u003eJust Like That\u003c\/i\u003e is highly recommended. -Paul D. Brazill, author of \u003ci\u003eA Case of Noir\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eEdgerton establishes the kind convincing, and wrenching, interiority with his characters achieved by only the most adept fiction writers. -Peter Donahue, Sam Houston State University \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eEdgerton's best stories are uncompromising in their casual amorality. They stare you down over the barrel of a gun, rip you up whether or not the trigger gets squeezed. -Diane Lefer, UCLA and Vermont College, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Circles I Move In\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eLes Edgerton creates a vivid and compelling world. We feel the rhythm of his language and live in the skins of his characters. Altogether, a memorable experience. -Gladys Swan, Missouri University and Vermont College, author of \u003ci\u003eA Visit to Stranger\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eLes Edgerton writes like a poet with a mean streak, and his prose goes down easy and smooth like good liquor as it carves up your insides. -Henry Perez, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eMourn the Living\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe characters in Edgerton's world bite down hard and grind up one another with their back teeth. Their authenticity is palpable as soft-shelled clams; these are sad, mean, fully human characters who long for connection almost as fiercely as they fear it. -Melody Henion Stevenson, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Life Stone of Singing Bird\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52531511394577,"sku":"NLS9781946502094","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9781946502094.jpg?v=1760656654"},{"product_id":"mirror-mirror-book-les-edgerton-9781948235778","title":"Mirror, Mirror","description":null,"brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52669301588241,"sku":"NLS9781948235778","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52953829998865,"sku":"NIN9781948235778","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9781948235778.jpg?v=1762287166"},{"product_id":"surviving-little-league-book-les-edgerton-9781589790674","title":"Surviving Little League","description":"In Surviving Little League- the father and son team of Les and Mike Edgerton offer a lighthearted but legitimate guide to maneuvering through the challenges and the characters of Little League baseball. Based on their own coaching and playing experiences, these insiders' views will enlighten, entertain, and energize anyone involved with this great American youth sporting tradition.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52820960051473,"sku":"NLS9781589790674","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9781589790674.jpg?v=1764330910"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/en-au\/collections\/author-books-by-les-edgerton.oembed","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}