This isn’t the kind of Harmony Duprie story you are used to – this is pure Jake Hennessey at his best – and his worst – in his own words and his point of view.
Tagline: Jake Hennessey is always on top of his game, anticipating the next big play…until Harmony Duprie changes everything.
I didn’t expect to write this book. Four or five years ago, I’d tried to write a short story from Jake’s point of view, but he wouldn’t talk to me. When I wrote “The End” after finishing The Ranger’s Dog Tags, I thought I was done with Harmony Duprie and her friends. But as I was doing research for a story featuring a female PI in Pittsburgh in the 1980s, Jake intruded. This book is the result.
Description: Jake Hennessey deals in selling fine jewelry of an illegal nature. The thrill of getting away with it is his addiction. When he hears a rumor about a rare old book in the personal collection of a small-town librarian, he gets the urge to try a new game.
After all, even jewel thieves get bored.
But the librarian, Harmony Duprie, isn’t what he expected and the challenge becomes serious business.
In order to win, Jake’s going to have to play by a new set of rules—and make them up as he goes along—because this time, he’s playing for the rest of his life.
Here’s a short excerpt:
The Bargen house was simple to break into. It was well-maintained, but Jake knew the tricks. The windows were the easiest point of entry once the family left to go to a concert. With the police busy controlling the crowds, the neighborhoods were unguarded.
The locked doors would be easy to pick, but that left behind traces a good cop would find. The first window Jake tried was firmly latched, and he didn’t want to break a window if he didn’t need to. But they’d left the kitchen window open a crack. He had to go through at an angle to get his shoulders through the narrow opening and use his arms to pull the rest of his body past the sink and onto the floor.
He waited a few seconds for his eyes to adjust to the semi-darkness. Older people favored nightlights throughout their house. They gave him all the light he needed to work. There hadn’t been time to scope out the interior, so he crept from room to room to find the main bedroom.
The door stood open, but he slipped on the latex gloves he’d swiped from the motel before he entered. If he got lucky, the case and the brooch would be sitting on top of the dresser. He hoped Mrs. Bargen hadn’t worn it. But the cluttered tray held no jewelry box.
He worked quickly, opening and closing each drawer, not finding what he was looking for. The next place to check was the closet. He turned on the light and closed the door behind him. And hit paydirt.
The Fall of Jake Hennessey is available at the retailers below, and will soon be available with Nook Press, I hope you’ll pick up a copy today. If you enjoy it, please leave a review, and thank you!
