Fall from Grace

New York: Forge Books. Fine in Fine dust jacket. 2011. First Edition. Hardcover. Debut novel. Protected in a removable Brodart archival cover. Full number line 0 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1. . 320 pages. A Les Desroches Mystery, No. 1. Leo Desroches goes straight—off the streets, into the newsroom, and up to his neck in murder. Marking the debut of Leo Desroches, one of the most unusual amateur detectives ever to appear in Canada or points south, this fast-paced, enthralling mystery is the story of a man who had everything, lost it all, and is trying to get it back. Leo Desroches doesn’t look like a native, but his mother was Cree, and he understands the problems of indigenous Canadians of the First Nations. Which is probably why the Edmonton newspaper he writes for decides he should be their Aboriginal Issues reporter. He has his own issues to deal with: his compulsive gambling that he couldn’t stop even after it cost him his wife and children; his alcoholism; the risk-taking that threatens to derail him every time he starts to get his life back together. When he’s assigned to cover the murder of a young native prostitute, it’s just one more story...until the cop in charge lets him view the corpse, something the Edmonton police never do. When Leo writes his article, it starts a chain of events that leads him to discover a much, much bigger story, one that could bring down the entire police department...if it doesn’t get him killed. .