Fadeaway Joe: A Novel

by Hugh Lessig

Overview

Pursued by labor traffickers, Paula Jessup desperately needs someone in her corner. Her unlikely savior is an aging bouncer with early-onset dementia, grappling with his own ghosts. All they have to do is trust each other.

At first glance, Paula thinks she's found her protector in sixty-four-year-old Joe Pendergast, a famous bouncer in Hampton Roads. Even though he is ancient by her standards - sixty-four years old and counting - he still packs a punch. He's more than a match for the traffickers who want to find her.

But then she learns Joe has been diagnosed with early-onset dementia. She also discovers he was much more than a bouncer. He worked as an enforcer and collector for a local loan shark for more than forty years. He has been cut loose due to his dementia diagnosis, and now he's plotting to kill his old boss before the disease takes him.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781639104369
Publisher:	CROOKED LANE BOOKS
Publication date:	08/22/2023
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	5.75(w) x 8.58(h) x 0.98(d)

About the Author

Hugh Lessig spent more than thirty years as an award-winning newspaper reporter, covering everything from city council meetings to the earthquake in Haiti. Along the way, he’s met people at the highs and lows of life and interviewed accused murderers and governors, welders and lawyers, and old men who fought our nation’s wars. Born in eastern Pennsylvania, he moved to Hampton Roads, Virginia, in 1997. His short stories have appeared in Thuglit, Shotgun Honey, Crime Factory and Needle. In addition, his work is featured in the following anthologies: Mickey Finn 21st Century Noir, Volumes I and II; Groovy Gumshoes: Private Eyes in the Psychedelic Sixties; and Guns & Tacos. Fadeaway Joe is his first novel.

Editorial Reviews

Praise for Fadeaway Joe:

STRAND CRITICS AWARDS BEST DEBUT MYSTERY NOMINEE

“[This] debut catches fire . . . [For] those who read for intriguing characters.”
—Library Journal

“An antihero with a twist.”
—Booklist

“A poignant, bittersweet action thriller . . . An excellent example of Hampton Roads noir.”
—Gumshoe Review

“A deep look at the effects of dementia . . . Fadeaway Joe introduces a new talent in Lessig.”
—South Florida Sun Sentinel, Best Mysteries of 2023

“A powerful and intense thriller with a vibrant heart.”
—S.A. Cosby, New York Times bestselling author of Razorblade Tears and All the Sinners Bleed

“Fadeaway Joe is the kind of noir I love: smart, tight, and just the right amount of gritty before giving way to the depths of human connection. The way Hugh builds the relationship between Joe and Paula is excellent, and by the end you'll be hoping this isn't the last we see of them together.”
—Rob Hart, award-nominated author of The Warehouse

“Though Joe Pendergrast is living with the early stages of dementia and will someday lose his memory, Fadeaway Joe will stick with readers long after they read its last page. What Hugh Lessig has accomplished within its pages is a triumph . . . Don’t cheat yourself by skipping out on this one. I can’t forget it.” 
—Mark Westmoreland, author of A Violent Gospel

“A sucker punch to the gut, a story that demands your attention and propels you through unexpected twists to a thrilling conclusion. It’s not to be missed!”
—Michael Bracken, Anthony, Edgar, and Shamus award nominated author 

“A well-crafted mix of murder, human trafficking, scams, betrayal, and surprising compassion. Told with a fresh voice and convincing characters, you’ll believe that revenge is not a dish best served cold, but rather, hot, and from a food truck.”
—Gregory Galloway, award-winning author of Just Thieves

“A twisty thrill ride that kept me turning pages, Fadeaway Joe is not to be missed. The teaming of Joe and Paula is a fresh take on the classic, grizzled older man and spiky younger woman pairing—imagine The Last of Us but a taut, gritty noir—and will have you rooting for them both by the end. I can't wait to see what Hugh Lessig writes next—his is a compelling new voice in crime fiction.” 
—Samantha Jayne Allen, author of Pay Dirt Road

“Man, I can’t tell you the last time I tore through a book like I did with Fadeaway Joe . . .  Echoing the best work of Jim Thompson and Charles Willeford, Lessig filters it all through a voice entirely his own.” 
—Todd Robinson, author of The Hard Bounce and creator of Thuglit

“A lean, clever debut that has all the elements of a great crime novel . . . This novel will leave you stunned and wanting more.”
—Scott Blackburn, author of It Dies with You

From the Publisher

07/01/2023

DEBUT This slow-moving debut catches fire with two unwilling partners desperate to stay alive. Although he spent 40 years working as a bouncer and enforcer for his friend Maxie, Joe Pendergast is fired after a fight with him. Now he runs a food truck, Joe's Takeaway, and has recently learned that he has dementia. After devoting his career to Maxie's enterprises, Joe wants satisfaction. He hatches a scheme to kill Maxie, but he's no longer capable of following his thoughts all the way through. He's saved from a bumbling attempt by Paula Jessup, a young woman with her own problems. Paula knows that her grandfather trafficked undocumented immigrants as laborers. When she rescued one of the girls, her grandfather caught her, and Paula killed him. Now the men who worked with Paula's grandfather are after her, and she needs a place to hide out. Will Joe and his food truck work as a hideaway? It turns out Joe and Paula could be useful to each other. VERDICT Suggest this novel that's not quite a caper to those who read for intriguing characters.—Lesa Holstine

Library Journal