An American who normally writes contemporary police procedural or serial killer tales, sets his latest thriller in pre-war Germany during the 1936 Olympics. It’s a mix of old-fashioned detective work (German policeman), appalling training tests (S.S.), a failing hit-man (ex-Mafia) and a frightening bit of duplicity (American). It won the Crime Writers Association highest award, the Gold Dagger, and it’s brilliant.
Paul Schumann made his name as a mobster hitman during Prohibition, known equally for his brilliant tactics and for taking only 'righteous' jobs.
But in 1936, his luck runs out. The men who catch him offer a stark choice. He can travel to Berlin as part of America's Olympics team and kill the man behind Hitler's rearmament scheme. Or he can go to the electric chair.
It's his chance to be a hero. At least, that's what they want him to believe...
Packed with fascinating period detail, GARDEN OF BEASTS delivers breathtaking action, a wrenching look at 1930s Germany and a stunning series of surprises.
Jeffery Deaver is the author of three collections of short stories and 32 suspense novels. He is best known for his Lincoln Rhyme thrillers, which include the number one bestsellers The Vanished Man, The Twelfth Card and The Cold Moon, as well as The Bone Collector which was made into a feature film starring Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie. The first Kathryn Dance novel, The Sleeping Doll, was published in 2007 to enormous acclaim.
A three-time recipient of the Ellery Queen Reader's Award for Best Short Story of the year, he has been nominated for an Anthony Award and six Edgar Awards from the Mystery Writers of America. He won the WH Smith Thumping Good Read Award in 2001 and in 2004 won the Crime Writers' Association Steel Dagger for Best Thriller with Garden of Beasts, and their Short Story Dagger for The Weekender from Twisted.
Jeffery Deaver lives in North Carolina and California.
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