Long Beach homicide detective Danny Beckett returns from a year-long medical leave badly scarred and in constant pain, yet determined to prove he still has what it takes to do the job. He gets his chance when a call comes in that shocks even the toughest guys in the squad room: A California congressman’s daughter-in-law and grandchildren have been brutally murdered in their upscale home. At first glance, it looks like a robbery gone wrong, but Danny’s not so sure. Something doesn’t quite add up. With state and local law enforcement in an uproar and the media circling like vultures, the pressure’s on for Danny and his partner, Jennifer Tanaka, to solve this one. Too much is at stake…and not just politically. Even if they manage to crack the case, there’s no guarantee the stress won’t derail Danny’s recovery. Because while the doctors can treat his physical pain, no one can erase the agony of the past that haunts every step he takes—and threatens to destroy his career once and for all.

An Edgar Award Nominee, Best Paperback Original.

For the first time in years, things are going well for Long Beach homicide detective Danny Beckett. He’s closing cases with his partner, Jennifer Tanaka, and keeping a spare suit at the condo of his girlfriend, Julia Rice. But Danny’s peace is shattered when he’s called to investigate an apparent suicide—one that quickly reveals itself to be murder.

Just as Danny begins to investigate, a bomb detonates in his car while it’s parked in a mechanic’s lot, sidelining him from both the murder case and the hunt for his own assassin. Placed in protective custody at the home of his partner, the headstrong investigator must resist the temptation to break protocol—and find the willpower to stop his own self-destructive behavior before it threatens his two most important relationships. But what happens when Danny must choose between following the rules and saving a life?

How can a shattered ex-cop follow the rules when he’s no longer sure of them?

For sixteen years, Ben Shepard loyally served the Long Beach Police Department. Then he took a bullet to the head, and his life was shattered. No one expects much of anything from him anymore—except his father, an old man receding into a fog of his own. And except maybe his tenant, Grace, who’s been a warm and friendly constant in his and his father’s bleak lives.

Until the day she vanishes.

After an official investigation stalls, Ben moves forward on his own. But stepping into Grace’s past—and all she was hiding—is a dangerous move for a man who can’t trust his memories from one day to the next. The deeper he gets, the more he has to question whether he’s being driven by the gut instincts of a suspicious former cop or by paranoia.

Recognizing what’s real can save Grace’s life. If only he can trust himself to do it…

On a sweltering September night, Long Beach Homicide Detective Danny Beckett is called to a grisly crime scene at the mouth of the Los Angeles River. A defenseless homeless man has been burned to death by three teenagers with gang ties. The suspects are already in custody, and the evidence is overwhelming—but when one suspect’s brother is targeted for murder, Danny starts to think there may be more to this seemingly clear-cut case. Obsessed with discovering the true identity of the victim, a gentle vagrant who may have been hiding a tortured past, Danny and his team start to uncover a high-reaching conspiracy that puts them all at risk—and threatens to open new wounds that could cut even deeper than Danny’s old ones.

Long Beach, Kalifornien: Danny Beckett von der Mordkommission gießt sich seinen ersten Drink für das Wochenende ein, da erhält er einen Anruf. Elizabeth Williams, eine Lehrerin an der nahe gelegenen Warren Highschool, ist brutal in ihrem Klassenraum ermordet worden. Als Danny am Tatort eintrifft, wird sogar ihm übel. Was konnte diese junge Frau getan haben, dass sie Opfer eines derart bestialischen Verbrechens wurde? Und was hat es zu bedeuten, dass der Killer ihre linke Hand als Trophäe mitgenommen hat? Beckett stürzt sich mit seiner üblichen Hartnäckigkeit und Coolness in den Fall, doch als er anfängt, die Puzzleteile zusammenzusetzen, steigen lange verdrängte, eigene Seelenqualen in ihm auf. Seine Jagd auf den Mörder entwickelt sich schnell zu einer persönlichen Suche nach Sühne, während er zugleich versucht, den Verlust seiner Frau und seiner Familie zu überwinden.

»Mord in Long Beach« wurde im November 2014 unter dem Titel »Ein König von unermesslichem Gebiete« erstveröffentlicht.