Jack Bludis

A fledgling private detective tries to make ends meet when Opportunity seems to present itself. Then he learns the scope of the case. That $250 seemed like such an easy payday ...

Ken Sligo returns in The Killers Are Coming, a cat-and-mouse investigation across the backstages and back alleys of “The Block,” Baltimore’s red-light district. Forged by the criminals and police, to isolate criminal activity, it can’t contain the various mobsters and shake-down artists sticking their toes outside the perimeter.

The paint hasn’t dried on the door to Sligo’s detective agency, and he’s contemplating closing shop. When Rudy Cohan offers him a cash-filled envelope in Baltimore’s Penn Station, he crosses his fingers and hopes for the best. Is Rainy Dawn cheating on her producer boyfriend? Where does she get her extra spending money? The answers don’t align with the questions, and Sligo realizes his client is holding out, but not before a mob hit points the finger right at him …

Ken Sligo has got a promising future, if he can survive his first big case. Jack Bludis presents his hardboiled hero with a duplicitous client and a flawed damsel, and leads readers through hair-raising suspense.