Third Rail

“Third Rail gets off to a ripping start and never lets off the gas. Rory Flynn is a suspense writer to watch.”—Jess Walter, author of the best-selling Beautiful Ruins

Harvard-educated Eddy Harkness was a rising star in an elite Boston Police Department narcotics unit—until he was blamed for the death of a Red Sox fan in the chaotic aftermath of a World Series win. Scapegoated and exiled, Harkness now empties parking meters in the sleepy town of Nagog while struggling to clear his name.

Then one night his police-issued Glock disappears. Unable to report the theft, he starts a secret search—just as a string of fatal accidents leads him to uncover a dangerous new smart drug, Third Rail. With only a plastic gun to protect him, Harkness begins a high-stakes investigation that leads him into the top levels of Boston’s power base, where politicians and criminals intertwine to deadly effect.

“Glows with the kind of sawdust-dry humor regarding Beantown, cops, and the darkest of urban underbellies that you might find at 3 a.m. in the back booth of a backstreet bar . . . With its gaggle of crazy-yet-riveting characters, its spare approach, and its unflagging action, Third Rail, the first in a promised series of Eddy Harkness novels, adds yet another striking feather to [Flynn’s] impressively crowded cap.” —Boston Globe

“Terrific debut . . . impressive economy and stylish, sophisticated prose . . . Readers will want to see more of Flynn’s gritty Boston—and Eddy Harkness.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review