The Blue Flame

“George Pelecanos does for Washington, D.C., what Raymond Chandler did for LA. Strange takes us into the D.C. the tourists and politicians don't know: from neat rowhouse neighborhoods to the D.C. Central Detention Facility. The title, The Blue Flame, refers to the fact that Strange, an ex-cop, still has that burning cop curiosity. I hope it's never extinguished.”—Maureen Corrigan, Fresh Air, NPR

“The novel evolves into a look at the bonds of friendship, at conspiracies and at the importance of community in a tightly wound plot. The Blue Flame burns bright as Pelecanos continues Derek’s story.”—Sun Sentinel

“If there is another case in store for Derek, let’s hope Mr. Pelecanos won’t make us wait another 14 years to read about it.”—Wall Street Journal

“A fitting return for both the character and the author.”—New York Times Book Review

“Pelecanos provides an unsettling view of Strange’s dealings with D.C. Metro Homicide as he digs beneath the smug skin of the nation’s capital…Eloquent testimony to the hero’s sense that “there was no such thing as closure.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Pelecanos’s experience shows in this warmly recommended, quietly absorbing tale.”—Library Journal

“PI Derek Strange (last seen in 2012’s What It Was) makes a welcome return in this engrossing, morally complex crime novel from Pelecanos…As always, Pelecanos challenges readers’ assumptions, and his points about the disappointments of seeking closure in the justice system are especially potent. This showcases a writer at the top of his game.”—Publishers Weekly (starred)

“There is simply no writer alive who captures the gritty language of the street in quite the same way as George Pelecanos. He is a poet of the inner city, and his characters and settings possess their own unique voices that never fail to ring true…The Blue Flame is an outstanding read.”—BookReporter

“George Pelecanos’s latest novel is another chance to hear from the master.”—Crime Fiction Lover

PRAISE FOR GEORGE PELECANOS

“A modern storytelling master.”—NPR.org

“Like his hero Elmore Leonard, Pelecanos finds the humanity in the lowest of lowlifes…Pelecanos’s peppery dialogue energizes every page.”—Lloyd Sachs, Chicago Tribune

“If I were in jail, George Pelecanos would be on my reading list, right up there with James Lee Burke and Elmore Leonard…Pelecanos’s characters are so human and so doomed. This is an author who writes with the steady hand of a man who knows he’s driving a cool set of wheels and respects his own mechanical skills.”—Marilyn Stasio, New York Times Book Review

“Every time I read one of George Pelecanos’s novels, I’m left a little awed…The guy’s a national treasure.”—Dennis Lehane

“Using his customary knowing dialogue and stripped-down, soulful prose, Pelecanos skillfully, sensitively works the urban frontier where the problems and stresses of everyday life cross the line into the sort of criminal behavior that could tempt anyone—anyone at all.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Here we see what makes Pelecanos’s best writing so resonant: the sense of longing, of miscommunication, the way love does not enlarge us but rather makes us small.”—David L. Ulin, Los Angeles Times

“The writing is taut, the violence is graphic, and the characters are so well-drawn that they step off the page and into your life…As good as it gets.”—Bruce DeSilva, Associated Press

“Crackles with energy.”—Dan DeLuca, Philadelphia Inquirer

“The characters—good-hearted, ill-intentioned, or in between—are shown by Mr. Pelecanos with loving clarity, free of cliché, condescension, or illusion…Delivers the thrills of an action movie and the poignancy of fine storytelling.”—Tom Nolan, Wall Street Journal