One-Shot Harry

Praise for One-Shot Harry CrimeReads 10 Novels to Read this Month CrimeReads Most Anticipated Books of 2022 She Reads Most Anticipated Mystery Novels of 2022 A Library Journal Editor's Pick for Spring 2022 “Terrific . . . What makes One-Shot Harry a standout is the cityscape of mid-century L.A it summons up — its music, chromium cars, hateful slurs, “invisible” racial boundaries and cautious hopes.” —NPR's Fresh Air “Phillips is a storyteller first, and the social chronicling never becomes didactic or overtakes the narrative. The wounds of 1963, and the foreshadowing of both better days and harsher ones, feel unnervingly fresh, and a reminder that progress, much as we wish otherwise, never adheres to a linear timeline.” —Sarah Weinman, The New York Times Book Review “One-Shot Harry is fast-paced, tough, wry and smart, but what makes this novel a singular sensation is the diverse cityscape of mid-century L.A. that Phillips summons up. More than simply scattering cosmetic references to African American newspapers or notables like Dorothy Dandridge . . . Phillips takes readers deep into another world and time: its jokes, home furnishings, baloney-meatloaf-and-hot-dog-heavy meals; its hateful slurs, “invisible” racial boundaries and cautiously hopeful possibilities.” —Maureen Corrigan, The Washington Post   “Propulsive . . . One-Shot Harry crackles with authenticity, and its resilient hero seems resourceful and tough enough to propel any number of sequels.” —Tom Nolan, The Wall Street Journal “Vividly depicts 1963 L.A . . . Phillips’ insight into racism, attitudes toward Black veterans, the Civil Rights movement, Black press and politics of the 1960s elevates One-Shot Harry. Readers will look forward to more camera work from Harry, and Phillips.” —Oline Cogdil, The South Florida Sun-Sentinel “Phillips’s writing has long been infused with big ideas and a scathing analysis of American greed, corruption, and racism . . . Encyclopedic knowledge of the history of Los Angeles’s economic development and progressive politics deepens the plot of One-Shot Harry.” —Paula Woods, Alta Magazine “The Phillips style of plotting fits squarely in the Chandler/Hammett tradition with the addition of intriguing and powerful issues of race.” —Toronto Star “Race—and racial tension—are the backbone of this novel of the early 1960s . . . Phillips captures the volatility of those times, when civil rights was literally on the march. He also effectively conjures the seamier side of Los Angeles . . . Phillips nails the atmosphere. He also keeps the reader guessing.” —Pittsburgh Post-Gazette “For thirty years Phillips has been a must-read writer, and One-Shot Harry is probably his best ever—tense and suspenseful, of course, but also deep, resonant and intelligent. It's a story that needed to be told, and therefore a book that needs to be read.” —Lee Child “Few books are able to capture the essence and vibe of classic hardboiled fiction and still manage to make the prose feel modern and of-the-moment. Gary Phillips does just that with One-Shot Harry and the memorable titular protagonist, Harry Ingram. This book is a swift uppercut of gritty storytelling that will keep you hungrily turning the pages, loaded with moments that will linger in your mind long after you've finished reading.” —Alex Segura, author of Secret Identity, Blackout<