LEAD WITH YOUR LEFTDave Wintino is the youngest homicide cop on the force, and is constantly getting ribbed for it. When an ex-cop named Owens is found murdered while delivering some for a bond company, no one takes Wintino seriously when he suggests it could be more than just a random burglary. He starts investigating on his own, and discovers that Owens and his old partner were still working together. Could an 30-year-old case involving a bootleg still and a gangland killing have anything to do with Owens’ death? When Owens’ partner is found murdered as well, Wintino knows that there is more than coincidence at work here—if only he can get someone to take him seriously. THE BEST THAT EVER DID ITTwo men are murdered on a New York City street. One is a guy who just won a thousand dollars in a slogan contest. The other is a cop. The wife of the cop hires Barney Harris to find the killer. But what possible motive could there be for the killing of these two total strangers? Of course, the cops are already on this one, but Barney gets lucky, and stumbles across a clue in a neighborhood bar. He finds a prostitute the two men had in common. But he still can’t figure out why a killer would go after them both. What linked these two men? And what kind of scheme prompts a gunman to go after a guy so squeaky clean that the boldest act of his life is planning a trip to Europe with his contest winnings? Lacy's fine and sure writing lifts this book above the ordinary... --Frank Hickey, author of the Max Royster crime novels If you re looking for something completely fresh in detective stories, lively, ingenious, entertaining and without even the shadow of any conventional clichés, you should lose no time in latching on to this book. --New York Times "One of the most interesting writers of the paperback originals." --Marv Lachman, 20th Century Crime & Mystery Writers LEAD WITH YOUR LEFT Dave Wintino is the youngest homicide cop on the force, and is constantly getting ribbed for it. When an ex-cop named Owens is found murdered while delivering some for a bond company, no one takes Wintino seriously when he suggests it could be more than just a random burglary. He starts investigating on his own, and discovers that Owens and his old partner were still working together. Could an 30-year-old case involving a bootleg still and a gangland killing have anything to do with Owens death? When Owens partner is found murdered as well, Wintino knows that there is more than coincidence at work here if only he can get someone to take him seriously. THE BEST THAT EVER DID IT Two men are murdered on a New York City street. One is a guy who just won a thousand dollars in a slogan contest. The other is a cop. The wife of the cop hires Barney Harris to find the killer. But what possible motive could there be for the killing of these two total strangers? Of course, the cops are already on this one, but Barney gets lucky, and stumbles across a clue in a neighborhood bar. He finds a prostitute the two men had in common. But he still can t figure out why a killer would go after them both. What linked these two men? And what kind of scheme prompts a gunman to go after a guy so squeaky clean that the boldest act of his life is planning a trip to Europe with his contest winnings? Ed Lacy was born Leonard Len S. Zinberg in New York City on August 25, 1911. During the late 1920s, he attended the College of the City of New York, then wandered the U.S. in the next decade working odd jobs. Returning to New York in the early 40s, he married Esther, and except for a stint in the army in WWII, lived with his wife and daughter in New York City on the fringes of Harlem the rest of his life. A huge fight fan, Zinberg s first published novel in 1940 was a boxing story, and became a Broadway play. He went on to create the first credible African-American PI, Touie Moore, in Room to Swing, which won the Edgar for Best Novel in 1958. Overall, Zinberg published 29 novels and over 90 short stories before his death by heart attack on January 7, 1968.