"Daniel Pyne flips all the standards upside-down with Catalina Eddy and in the process delivers a classic California noir — times three. This is Pyne’s masterpiece. I guarantee no reader will go wanting.” –Michael ConnellyTimes may change, but crimes never do, and neither do the people who investigate them. A collection of three loosely connected crime novellas, each set in a distinct era, Catalina Eddy is a gritty, hard-boiled exploration into the immutable police underworld of Southern California. In The Big Empty, an obstinate Los Angeles detective investigates the murder of his estranged wife while fears of nuclear war and Communism grip the nation; in Losertown, a mid-career attorney in San Diego chases down a legendary drug kingpin but chafes against the Reagan Revolution policies of his new boss; and in Portuguese Bend, set in the present day, an undercover cop is paralyzed in a gunfight but determined to solve what may be her last case as a police officer in Long Beach. They are all, in one way or another, stuck in dreary endless loops of love, murder, and the quest for clarity, release, and redemption.  Reminiscent of James Ellroy’s grittiness and Raymond Chandler’s dark wit, Catalina Eddy is Daniel Pyne’s clever homage to—and skillful deconstruction of—traditional noir storytelling. Moody, enthralling, and keenly imagined, Catalina Eddy evokes the characters and ambiance of a singular, peculiar landscape with cinematic flair.

Lee, a high school shop teacher in Evergreen, Colorado, managed to survive his messy divorce only to hurtle into what some might call a full-on midlife crisis. Looking for a way to spend his weekends and the now painfully long summer vacation, Lee buys a gold mine off the internet—a real, honest-to-God mine, complete with tall tales of riches, a history of disappointment, and a couple of Pakistani-by-the-way-of-Jackson-Hole prospectors willing to kill for its contents.With the frequently unwanted help of a band of locals, Lee becomes a weekend warrior, attempting to work the mine and keep himself distracted from his other midlife disturbances. There are the Pakistanis, of course, along with his mercurial brother Grant, just released from prison, who is trying in his typically perilous way to pull Lee from his midlife funk. There is his ex-wife Lorraine and her slick boyfriend, Stan Beachum, and the lovely yet mysterious Rayna, the first woman Lee’s wanted to date since his divorce.In Daniel Pyne’s sharp, fun, and raucous style, A Hole in the Ground Owned by a Liar is part mystery and part gold-infused tall tale with a cast of refreshingly quirky characters and one highly unexpected payout.

"Daniel Pyne flips all the standards upside-down with Catalina Eddy and in the process delivers a classic California noir — times three. This is Pyne’s masterpiece. I guarantee no reader will go wanting.” –Michael ConnellyTimes may change, but crimes never do, and neither do the people who investigate them. A collection of three loosely connected crime novellas, each set in a distinct era, Catalina Eddy is a gritty, hard-boiled exploration into the immutable police underworld of Southern California. In The Big Empty, an obstinate Los Angeles detective investigates the murder of his estranged wife while fears of nuclear war and Communism grip the nation; in Losertown, a mid-career attorney in San Diego chases down a legendary drug kingpin but chafes against the Reagan Revolution policies of his new boss; and in Portuguese Bend, set in the present day, an undercover cop is paralyzed in a gunfight but determined to solve what may be her last case as a police officer in Long Beach. They are all, in one way or another, stuck in dreary endless loops of love, murder, and the quest for clarity, release, and redemption.  Reminiscent of James Ellroy’s grittiness and Raymond Chandler’s dark wit, Catalina Eddy is Daniel Pyne’s clever homage to—and skillful deconstruction of—traditional noir storytelling. Moody, enthralling, and keenly imagined, Catalina Eddy evokes the characters and ambiance of a singular, peculiar landscape with cinematic flair.

Lee, a high school shop teacher in Evergreen, Colorado, managed to survive his messy divorce only to hurtle into what some might call a full-on midlife crisis. Looking for a way to spend his weekends and the now painfully long summer vacation, Lee buys a gold mine off the internet—a real, honest-to-God mine, complete with tall tales of riches, a history of disappointment, and a couple of Pakistani-by-the-way-of-Jackson-Hole prospectors willing to kill for its contents.With the frequently unwanted help of a band of locals, Lee becomes a weekend warrior, attempting to work the mine and keep himself distracted from his other midlife disturbances. There are the Pakistanis, of course, along with his mercurial brother Grant, just released from prison, who is trying in his typically perilous way to pull Lee from his midlife funk. There is his ex-wife Lorraine and her slick boyfriend, Stan Beachum, and the lovely yet mysterious Rayna, the first woman Lee’s wanted to date since his divorce.In Daniel Pyne’s sharp, fun, and raucous style, A Hole in the Ground Owned by a Liar is part mystery and part gold-infused tall tale with a cast of refreshingly quirky characters and one highly unexpected payout.