Praise for Duane Swierczynski and his novels----
"Breathless action. So much fun to read-on the couch or on the run."--The New York Times Book Review
"Riveting . . . Memorable characters, suspense, a native's portrait of a fascinating city, eruptions of spectacular violence--fans will love this one."--Booklist (starred review)
"Swierczynski keeps the action pulsating along [with] an array of compelling characters, crisp dialogue, and pop culture references."--Boston Globe
"Duane Swierczynski has written his best novel, and that's saying something. From the tragi-comic opening sentence to the heartrending final paragraph, California Bear is fresh, exciting, and brilliantly unpredictable. The Girl Detective will live in my heart forever."
--James Patterson, New York Times bestselling author
"There's real truth at the core of California Bear, Duane Swierczynski's latest novel. And no, it's not some ripped-from-the-headlines true crime element. It's not even the crafty writing or the dead-on dialogue. It's heart. Plain and simple. This book was written straight from the heart, and I won't ever forget it."--Eli Cranor, author of Don't Know Tough and Ozark Dogs
"With all the wit and style of Elmore Leonard, but way more heart, California Bear is a can't-put-it-down caper, an incisive look at the dark side of true crime 'entertainment, ' and a beautifully moving story of a family in crisis learning exactly how far they'll go for each other, all in one. I can't wait to see more of Jack and especially Matilda, who is the kickass twenty-first century successor to Philip Marlowe Los Angeles crime fiction needs. I loved this book!"--Halley Sutton, bestselling author of The Hurricane Blonde
"Duane Swierczynski pulls off a miracle of a crime book that is both terrifyingly thrilling and deeply heartfelt--all while being darkly funny in a Elmore Leonard kind of way. From Matilda, the hospitalized wanna-be detective teen, to the coming out of retirement serial killer at the heart of this novel, the California Bear--I could not put this book down."--Scott Reynolds, screenwriter of Jessica Jones and Dexter
"Swierczynski is brilliant at fooling even savvy readers, and his jaw-dropping twists never compromise his exceptional character development. This is a tour de force." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"California Bear is a kick-ass serial killer thriller with heart. It's Veronica Mars meets Hannibal Lector, about a formidable girl-detective with a terrible sickness, her ex-con dad, and an elusive monster in crime-riddled Los Angeles. Swierczynski's written an utterly fresh take on LA noir."--Sarah Langan, author of Good Neighbors and A Better World
"What a fantastic storyteller! Duane Swierczynski is the oh-so-talented face of the new noir--and his terrific California Bear is relentless (in a brilliant way) and propulsive, with captivating characters hurtling toward certain disaster--and, somehow, redemption. Swierczynski's unique voice is unstoppable, and this evocative mystery is also infinitely heartbreaking. I could not put it down." --Hank Phillippi Ryan, USA Today Bestselling Author of The House Guest
"If you've been looking for a thriller that checks all the boxes - smarts, suspense and heart - you'll find it in Duane Swierczynski's California Bear. The Girl Detective is a teenage crime-solver like no other and the Bear she's up against is as dangerous as serial killers come. This is cat and mouse fiction at its very best."--Gar Anthony Haywood, author of the Aaron Gunner mystery series
"The novel tackles a number of themes, including the current fascination with true-crime stories, the difficulties of reconciliation between people who have been estranged for many years, and the question of whether someone who acquires a taste for killing can ever really stop. The characters are beautifully designed, and the author offers up some tantalizing questions. . . . Swierczynski brings the story to a magnificent, surprising, exhilarating conclusion. An ambitious and deeply satisfying novel."--Booklist (starred review)
"Loaded with emotion, redemption, and comeuppance in sufficient measure to inspire the hope of encountering these characters again. . . . Compelling not for its solution but for the act of solving, with modern cultural references and screen-worthy action."--Library Journal (starred review)
"Twisty, engaging and surprisingly heartfelt . . . explor[ing] police corruption, dysfunctional marriages, and the bond between fathers and daughters. . . . A less ambitious writer might have built his novel solely around the search for the Bear. But Swierczynski has some tricks up his sleeve that make California Bear anything but a straightforward thriller."--Book Reporter
"A powerful story with myriad surprises . . . Swierczynski's melding of a gripping plot and superb characters will prove California Bear to be one of the year's best."--South Florida Sun-Sentinel
"Well-crafted...not only hair-raising but emotionally resonant."--Elle