""Les Standiford takes us under the big top and behind the curtain in this richly researched and thoroughly engaging narrative that captures all of the entrepreneurial intrigue and spirit of the American circus." -Gilbert King, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Devil in the Grove
Millions have sat under the "big top," watching as trapeze artists glide and clowns entertain, but few know the captivating stories behind the men whose creativity, ingenuity, and determination created one of our country's most beloved pastimes.
In Battle for the Big Top, New York Times-bestselling author Les Standiford brings to life a remarkable era when three circus kings-James Bailey, P. T. Barnum, and John Ringling-all vied for control of the vastly profitable and influential American Circus. Ultimately, the rivalry of these three men resulted in the creation of an institution that would surpass all intentions and, for 147 years, hold a nation spellbound.
Filled with details of their ever-evolving showmanship, business acumen, and personal magnetism, this Ragtime-like narrative will delight and enchant circus-lovers and anyone fascinated by the American experience. "
"When Presidential Deal hit the bestseller lists, fans of Les Standiford’s other books, including Done Deal and Raw Deal, rejoiced. They already knew what new readers would find: taut suspense, tough characters, and a superb sense of mood. Now in Black Mountain, Standiford combines high-country adventure with a tale of ruthless revenge.
Black Mountain looms on the horizon east of Yellowstone. When New York’s governor goes there on vacation, policeman Richard Corrigan is an unofficial part of the security team. The first “accident” occurs when the seaplane explodes after dropping them at the campsite. The second is clearly murder. One by one, members of the camping trip are targeted by unseen, silent killers.
As Corrigan desperately tries to anticipate the next attack, the danger and tension mount with each passing hour. Filled with nonstop action, Black Mountain reaches new heights of suspense.
“Complex and stylish, Black Mountain makes James Dickey’s Deliverance seem like a frolic in the park with the local Cub Scout troop. Featuring the wildest bad guys who ever pulled on hiking boots, this is Standiford’s richest and most compelling work yet.”—James W. Hall
Includes an exclusive interview with the author"
"'John Deal is such a rich creation, full of anger, courage and doubt, that you may have to remind yourself that you're reading fiction.'—Chicago Tribune
John Deal's life is finally coming together—he is reunited with his lovely wife, they have a beautiful baby, and DealCo, his Miami construction business, is booming with post-Hurricane Andrew contracts rolling in. The future looks bright … until the night that his house is engulfed by an arsonist's flames and his wife is terribly burned.
Unbeknownst to him, Deal has stumbled into the path of the sickly sweet plans of sugar cane magnate and Cuban imigri power broker, Vicente Luis Torreno, a man obsessed by his dreams of a repatriated Cuba and the juicy profits of the sugar monopoly he is sure will come with it.
Torreno's sugar-coated influence reaches to the highest levels of the U.S. government, a fact that more than complicates Deal's efforts to find out who is responsible for this latest tragedy and to avoid joining the string of bodies that litter the South Florida landscape, all the way from the vast cane fields of Lake Okeechobee to the shores of Biscayne Bay."
"In the fifth installment of the series, Deal is being awarded the Presidential Medal of Valor, and as a campaign gimmick, the presentation ceremony is held in Miami. During the ceremony, terrorists interrupt with machine gun fire, and Deal and the First Lady are taken captive."
"Life looks good for John Deal. A new contract promises to put the family business in the black and restore its reputation, tarnished by suicide, the suicide of John's father. Getting out from under Barton Deal's shady past is tough. The new contract is linked to old ties—like the multi-million dollar pact Barton made with Miami mobster Lucky Rhodes decades ago. Now both men are gone, the money has vanished, and Lucky's son wants it back. John Deal is about to discover just how deep blood ties can cut …"
"Done Deal is the first in the series featuring reluctant sleuth John Deal, a South Florida building contractor who has a penchant for stepping into the path of the wrong people. Here, Deal is struggling to rebuild the once formidable DealCo, a development company once headed by his flamboyant father Barton Deal—but little does he know that the piece of land upon which he plans to build a small apartment complex is coveted by a ruthless businessman intent on making a fortune off Major League Baseball's arrival in South Florida."
"This suspenseful third John Deal crime thriller from Standiford finds the Miami building contractor tangling with Chinese gangsters who are trying to move in on a scheme hatched by two Hollywood porno magnates to create X-rated films for the huge mainland Chinese market.
Deal already has troubles enough—his wife, Janice, has sunk into a deep depression over the serious burns she suffered in last year's Raw Deal, and a close friend has apparently committed suicide, shortly after she has told her film-star sister, Paige Nobleman, that Paige was adopted. Deal and his tenant/pal, ex-cop Vernon Driscoll, begin investigating Paige's birth and, eventually, the friend's death, following leads that take them directly into the porno scheme and the path of some deadly Chinese gang members.
Standiford, an unusually fine thriller writer who has won the Frank O'Connor Award for Short Fiction and who directs the creative writing program at Florida International University, is at the top of his game here, displaying excellent pacing and a particular affinity for action scenes. The ongoing saga of John Deal remains especially intriguing above all, however, because its author drenches each volume in the ambiguities—sometimes rewarding, sometimes nightmarish—of real life."
"“Les Standiford’s account of the decades-long attempt to solve the murder of Adam Walsh is chilling, heartbreaking, hopeful, and as relentlessly suspenseful as anything I’ve ever read. A triumph in every way.”
—Dennis Lehane, author of Mystic River
“The most significant missing child case since the Lindbergh’s….A taut, compelling and often touching book about a long march to justice.”
—Scott Turow, author of Presumed Innocent
The abduction that changed America forever, the 1981 kidnapping and murder of six-year-old Adam Walsh—son of John Walsh, host of the Fox TV series America’s Most Wanted—in Hollywood, Florida, was a crime that went unsolved for a quarter of a century. Bringing Adam Home by author Les Standiford is a harrowing account of the terrible crime and its dramatic consequences, the emotional story of a father and mother’s efforts to seek justice and resolve the loss of their child, and a compelling portrait of Miami Beach Homicide Detective Joe Matthews, whose unwavering dedication brought the Adam Walsh case to its resolution."
"Contractor-sleuth John Deal is the last of his kind—a builder who appreciates his craft. His friend Arch Dolan was the last of his kind, too, a Miami bookseller who sold books because he loved them. Now someone has killed him for it. And he's only the first body to fall. In quick succession the CEO of a huge bookstore chain and a local lawyer meet violent ends … and Deal begins finding connections.
But it's not as easy for Deal as it used to be. His estranged wife, Janice, is still emotionally scarred from his last adventure. Janice was close to Arch, though, and she's as eager to find his killer as her husband. Working together, they discover that Arch's sister Sara, lately employed by a charismatic Christian revivalist, has disappeared. With the clues pointing north, Deal and Janice set off to find out more—before they're both chilled out for good."
