A debut perfect for fans of Ross MacDonald, Dashiell Hammett, Dennis Lehane & James Lee Burke
LOS ANGELES, CA – Private investigator and author Patrick H. Moore is releasing his heart pounding political thriller debut “27 Days” (Feb 6, 2023, Down & Out Books), which follows private investigator Nick Crane as he races against the clock to save his best friend from the powerful alt-right terrorist group that will spare no one to “Make America Safe Again.”
27 Days is a taut, topical political thriller that blends noir with a dash of contemporary Western as it introduces us to veteran LA PI Nick Crane, “a throwback to the old-school, rough-and-tumble, tough-talking, quick-thinking, take-no-prisoners, PI,” (author Charles Salzberg). In the spring of 2019, Nick is on the run in the Pacific Northwest, pursued by a cabal of wealthy alt-right power brokers and domestic terrorists claiming to “Make America Safe Again”–at any cost. The terrorist group, “The Principles,” is led by Nick’s old enemy Marguerite Ferguson, who is out for his blood. When The Principles kidnap Nick’s friend and business partner Bobby Moore, Nick is informed that he has 27 days to surrender to Marguerite, and if he doesn’t, Bobby will be tortured and murdered. Help appears in the form of a young, idealistic female FBI agent named Carrie North who wants to arrest Marguerite for conspiring to commit domestic terrorist operations against the U.S.. Nick and Carrie join forces and the race against time to rescue Bobby Moore begins. And what a race it is!
“A blisteringly taut page turner with loads of engaging attitude plus blindside twists that Moore delivers with the authority of a pro investigator (he is) and the panache of a rock’n’roller (he is that too) who has spent years crawling through the brains of our top noirists from Hammett to Lehane and distilled the best they have to offer.”
– Michael D. Sellers, Award winning Director of Eye of the Dolphin
“27 Days”
Patrick Moore | February 6, 2023 | Down & Out Books | Political Thriller
Paperback | 978-1-64396-298-6 | Ebook
Advance Praise for “27 Days”
“Locked in a life and death struggle with evil, Patrick H. Moore’s PI Nick Crane is a throwback to the old-school, rough-and-tumble, tough-talking, quick-thinking, take-no-prisoners, PI. In Moore’s new thriller “27 Days”, evil comes in the form of a well-organized gang of domestic terrorists called The Principals, whose slogan is Make America Safe Again, and who think that putting Nick six-feet under will do the job. Moore skillfully delivers in the rat-a-tat, take-no-prisoner style of Spillane and Hammett, daring you to turn the page and see what happens next.” – Charles Salzberg, 2-time Shamus Award nominee for Swann’s Last Song and Second Story Man
“Haven’t enjoyed a detective novel this much in a long, long time.” – Max Myers, Award winning author of Boysie Blake: Problem Solver
“Patrick H. Moore delivers a dark masterpiece here, a brawling, gunfire symphony dripping with ominous overtones. A contemporary western, a compelling and intricate mystery, a social allegory of the oldest sins of humankind–this book has it all. Take note: Patrick H. Moore has entered the big leagues.” – John Nardizzi, Shamus Award finalist for The Burden of Innocence
“In “27 Days”, L.A. Private Investigator Nick Crane goes mano a mano against a highly ambitious, ultra-violent network of domestic terrorists intent on eliminating their enemies–Nick chief among them… Readers looking for unrelenting suspense and fascinating well-developed characters will find it all here, as the bodies pile up and the action cascades in unanticipated twists that will keep you riveted until the final page.” – John Brown, Los Angeles Private Investigator
More about Patrick H. Moore
PATRICK H. MOORE is a Los Angeles based private investigator and sentencing mitigation specialist. Since 2003, he has worked on over 500 drug trafficking, sex crime, violent crime and white collar fraud cases. Patrick started the All Things Crime Blog in 2013. For several years it was one of the most popular crime blogs in America and currently has over 3 million views. Patrick studied English Literature and Creative Writing at San Francisco State University. While in college, Patrick published numerous short stories and novel excerpts. More recently, in 2014, he indie-published his first thriller, “Cicero’s Dead”, which sold well and was a finalist in the thriller category in the Beverly Hills Book Award Contest. “27 Days” is Patrick’s first traditionally published novel.
Follow Patrick H. Moore on social media:
Facebook: @allthingscrimeblog and @patrick.moore.921230 | Instagram: @patrickhmoore1/ | Twitter: @PatrickHMoore1 | Blog – All Things Crime: https://allthingscrimeblog.com/
In an interview, Patrick H. Moore can discuss:
- His career as a Los Angeles private investigator, and his knowledge of criminal defense and the court system
- How his political thriller differs from the genre standard of modern-day thrillers, and why thrillers can and should be topical
- The real-life political events that influenced his writing, and the importance of the reality behind his fictional story
- The creation of his characters, how they were inspired by real life, and why he decided to create them how he did
- His past writing experiences as the owner of All Things Crime Blog
- His plans to continue PI Nick Crane’s story
An Interview with Patrick Moore
How does the social and political content in your book differ from the content of other modern-day thrillers?
I think the big difference between 27 Days and most modern-day thrillers is fairly clear. Although there are exceptions, most contemporary thrillers do not address the social and political issues that have divided America into warring camps and that threaten to destroy our democracy. While 27 Days is undoubtedly a page turner, and is entirely fictitious, it tries to take on the alt-right domestic terrorists as directly as possible, within the context of a heart-pounding, fast-paced thriller.
Your protagonist and his friends seem to be somewhat skeptical of law enforcement, even though one of them is a cop. Why, then, did you create the character Carrie North, who is an FBI agent?
Nick Crane and his friends are somewhat skeptical of cops because they know that far too many of them are brutal and vindictive. Despite this, I created Carrie North, the FBI agent, because I suddenly thought, ‘What if some young idealistic FBI agents do exist, and what if one of them, Ms. Carrie North, wants to go after Nick’s nemesis, the villainous Marguerite Ferguson, and what if she finds out that Nick has substantial evidence that Marguerite has been conspiring to commit acts of domestic terrorism? I then realized that they would be a natural fit because they need each other. I also wanted to create a strong female character to add interest and diversity to the story. And then I fell in love with Carrie, something Nick Crane for the most part resists.
Do you view Nick Crane as a reflection of yourself?
Nick Crane is not so much a reflection of myself, as he is my alter-ego. He is what I might be like if I was quite fearless and willing to risk my life on a regular basis for what I believe is right. As a young man “on the streets” and during my decades of work in criminal defense, I have rubbed elbows with a great many violent individuals/criminals and am fairly comfortable around them. Yet, personally, I have always been non-violent. Although Nick Crane would never hurt anyone unnecessarily (he does have a heart!), he was raised on the wrong side of the tracks and learned out of necessity to “throw down” at an early age.
What are some real-life political moments that inspired the writing of your novel?
During the time I was writing 27 Days and its prequel, Rogues and Patriots, I was furious over the burgeoning private prison industry and its nefarious relationship to mass incarceration in the United States. I was also thoroughly disgusted by the manner in which elements on the far right were making careers out of invoking the grim specter of racism, both subtly and overtly. I was also disgusted by the manner in which the legions of desperate immigrants trying to get into the United States, especially the families, were treated by our Border Patrol. Those of us who are comfortably secure here in the US need to walk in the other guy’s shoes and learn to empathize with the disadvantaged and the abandoned of this world. I was as shocked as everyone else by the January 6th Insurrection, but viewed retrospectively, 27 Days, which was completed before that dark day, seems eerily prophetic.
What is next for you and Nick Crane?
At the end of 27 Days, Nick Crane and his friends, although having reached temporary “safe harbor,” are hardly “out of the woods.” Nick’s enemy Marguerite Ferguson and “the Principals” will never give up their vendetta against him, and soon, he will once again be living the life of a fugitive. My challenge is to find a way for Nick to neutralize Marguerite and company once and for all so that he can go to other challenges/adventures where his life will hopefully not be in constant danger. I am a slow writer, and each Nick Crane story presents me with unique challenges.
A former award-winning journalist with national exposure, Marissa now oversees the day-to-day operation of the Books Forward author branding and book marketing firm, along with our indie publishing support sister company Books Fluent.
Born and bred in Louisiana, currently living in New Orleans, she has lived and developed a strong base for our company and authors in Chicago and Nashville. Her journalism work has appeared in USA Today, National Geographic and other major publications. She is now interviewed by media on best practices for book marketing.
