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Why don’t I let these good people tell you about DEAD GIRL BLUES?

“Dark and cold as the far side of the moon, but with prose as lean as a starving model, DEAD GIRL BLUES is like the dead body you can’t help but look at. I couldn’t quit reading, and damn sure didn’t want to.  A grim masterpiece of storytelling.” 

~ Joe R. Lansdale

“The book is so dark it veers into the ultraviolet. But it’s also fearless, and it does what art is supposed to do. If you’re willing to Ebook Cover_200306_Block_Dead Girl Bluesbe horrified by what you see and by the lens through which you see it, maybe Lawrence Block will sing you those DEAD GIRL BLUES.

~Warren Moore

DEAD GIRL BLUES still claws at me. It’s a time-release dread capsule that locked me in someone’s shoes and made my gut twist all along the ride. Maybe his best book, and that’s saying something.”

~Tom Straw

“It’s been a long time since I read anything this hard-hitting and thought-provoking. DEAD GIRL BLUES is daringly original, both shocking and brilliantly told.”  

~ David Morrell

DEAD GIRL BLUES will surely offend some readers, but I loved it. It’s wonderfully written and the voice is pitch-perfect, comfortable and unsettling at the same time. If you are into dark noir, this book is for you.”

~Lee Goldberg

“This is an astonishing novel, the most profound examination and evisceration of identity which I have encountered in decades. A stunning and terminally unsettling work.”

~Barry N. Malzberg

“It’s a meditation on dark impulses and trying to live with them that is going to haunt me for a good long while.  Some people have already noted that this is one of Block’s best books, and you can add me to that list.”

~Kemper’s Book Blog

“When the novel turned out to be a weirdly quiet, weirdly gentle story of a man who may have gotten away with worse than murder, and how he lives with it—well, it surprised me. I didn’t know how compelling such a contemplation would be, and how tense and thrilling. It’s that throttling sense of not knowing that makes this bizarre book so fantastic. Come for the violence. Stay for the if.”

~Kevin Quigley @ Goodreads

“Lawrence Block’s first published novel hit the shelves in 1958. That means that the author has published books in eight different decades. Let that marinate in your mind for a minute. Even more remarkable: the quality of his work hasn’t slipped a bit. He’s still got the magic.”

~Tom Simon @ Paperback Warrior

“I believe it was Ed Gorman who said that Block writes the best sentences in the business. That’s still true. This is a book that may not be for everybody, since it’s a little squirm-inducing in places, but it’s also heartwarming at times, in its own oddball way. I really liked it.”

~James Reasoner @ Rough Edges

“It’s a horrible book, insofar as it (in this reader at least) inspired horror. And it’s an absolute triumph. Block  elevates DEAD GIRL BLUES into something that’s by turns chilling, warming, disturbingly erotic. It’s a book about the monster in all of us, and what happens when that monster gets loose. And it’s a book, I think, about learning to live with the monster and the consequences of our actions. One of the best books he’s ever written.”

~Derek Farrell @ Do Some Damage

“One of the most powerful and scary books Block has written. The scary part is the way the sociopath who commits the horrible crime proceeds to acquire the veneer of socialization that allows him to become one of the pillars of his community. Oh, and his portrayal rings true. I have two sociopathic relatives, and the portrayal resonates very closely to how they behave.”

~Deb Wunder @ Goodreads

“I would find myself at times actually rooting for this guy, but then I’d remember just exactly what he is and get brought back down to earth.  It’s such an incredible achievement! DEAD GIRL BLUES is likely to be the most interesting book I read in 2020.”

~Brandon Sears @ Every Good Read

“DEAD GIRL BLUES is the kind of morally complex novel that is rare and important. The aftermath of a violent crime is examined in a totally unexpected and original way, with a galvanizing plot and a first-person voice that will keep readers turning pages late into the night. This is Lawrence Block at the top of his game, and that’s saying something!”

~Jonathan Santlofer

Well, after all these years in the business, I guess you’ve got a lot of friends. Are you planning to do anything with these quotes besides share them here?

They’re the new product description on the Amazon page. I used to have a couple of paragraphs warning people away from DEAD GIRL BLUES, and I decided to shut up and get out of the way.

That’s usually a good idea. The book’s coming out June 24?

Right.

The day you turn 82.

Right again.

Ebook Cover_200529_Block_Edizione italiana-Dead Girl Blues 2And you’re publishing Luigi Garlaschelli’s Edizione Italiana the same day, if I remember correctly. And Tantor will release Peter Berkrot’s audio rendition, and isn’t that also June 24?

It is.

And all of these indispensable items can be preordered right now? Don’t bother answering that. Of course they can. Why else would you put in all the hyperlinks?

Uh…

Never mind. How are you doing with the preorders? I just know you’re gonna tell me they’re exceeding expecations.

Dead Girl Blues audio coverI didn’t really have any expectations. It seems to me we’re getting good preorders for the ebook and hardcover editions. Some gremlins at Amazon are making it impossible to preorder the paperback, but it seems to be available via Barnes & Noble.

As I recall, we can save $2 by preordering the ebook. What do we save by preordering the printed book and the audiobook?

Time. Anxiety. Wear and tear on one’s memory.

That’s all?

I’m afraid so.

And is that all for this newsletter? No bargains, no tips, no suggestions as to what to read? No cute little stories about some pithy observation your Frequent Companion came up with?

Not a one.

The two of you bought caterpillars and are waiting for them to turn into butterflies. Want to talk about that?

Not particularly.

Oh. Well, okay. No list of appearances? No, of course not. You’re an old guy in the middle of a pandemic that’s busy knocking off old guys left and right. You’re not about to leave your house to sign books, are you?

No.

Well, I guess I can’t blame you. What else is there to say?

Just this:

Cheers,


PS: As always, please feel free to forward this to anyone you think might find it of interest. And, if you yourself have received the newsletter from a friend and would like your own subscription, that’s easily arranged; an  email to lawbloc@gmail.com with Newsletter in the subject line will get the job done.

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