August Snow

Winner of the Hammett Prize and the Nero Award From the wealthy suburbs to the remains of Detroits bankrupt factory districts, August Snow is a fast-paced tale of murder, greed, sex, economic cyber-terrorism, race and urban decay. Tough, smart, and struggling to stay alive, August Snow is the embodiment of Detroit. The son of an African-American father and a Mexican-American mother, August grew up in the citys Mexicantown and joined the police force only to be drummed out by a conspiracy of corrupt cops and politicians. But August fought back; he took on the city and got himself a $12 million wrongful dismissal settlement that left him low on friends. He has just returned to the house he grew up in after a year away, and quickly learns he has many scores to settle. Its not long before hes summoned to the palatial Grosse Pointe Estates home of business magnate Eleanore Paget. Powerful and manipulative, Paget wants August to investigate the increasingly unusual happenings at her private wealth management bank. But detective work is no longer Augusts beat, and he declines. A day later, Paget is dead of an apparent suicide--which August isnt buying for a minute. What begins as an inquiry into Eleanore Pagets death soon drags August into a rats nest of Detroits most dangerous criminals, from corporate embezzlers to tattooed mercenaries.