Secret Dead Men

A smart-talking supernatural noir, full of twists and turns, delivered at a whipalong pace about a dead investigative-journalist-turned-soul-collector on the trail of his nemesis and murderer. Perfect for fans of Ben Aaranovitch and Richard Kadrey.

Del Farmer isn’t your ordinary hardboiled private eye. Instead of collecting fingerprints or clues, he collects souls of the recently dead. His latest dead guy, Brad Larsen, might just be the key to destroying Farmer’s long-time nemesis, The Association.

Of course, Farmer is sadly mistaken. An FBI agent unstuck in time is toying with him. A mysterious couple keeps trying to kill him. Another job a mundane babysitting gig that pays the bills is threatening to steer him way off course into a violent hell of sexual deceit, fractured identities and cheap apartment toilets.

With only a head packed full of nagging ghosts, Del realises this case might just drive him out of his mind, literally.

Swierczynski’s brisk pace and light comic touch often resemble vintage Donald Westlake…A delicious comic thriller with a science-fiction twist.
-Kirkus Reviews

Secret Dead Men is the most inventive, uplifting, hilarious, moving novel since The Catcher in the Rye.
— Ken Bruen, author of Galway Girl

A profoundly psychotic hilarious whodunit fantasy… It’s as if [Swierczynski] simultaneously channeled Philip K. Dick, Eugene Ionesco, Richard Matheson, Raymond Chandler and Charles Willeford.
— Ed Gorman, author of the Sam McCain mysteries

Filled with fascinating creations and memorable scenes. [Secret Dead Men] takes the traditional forms and puts a unique spin on them, reflecting the mind of an author with both new ideas and an idiosyncratic personality.
–Philadelphia Inquirer

Fresh and idiosyncratic… Offbeat, quirky and confident, revealing Swierczynski as a talented newcomer.
— Chicago Sun-Times

One of the most surreal, amusing crime thrillers in recent memory. A masterpiece of weirdness and humor.
–January Magazine

Secret Dead Men is a blast of a read and the most imaginatively conceived crime novel I’ve read in ages, possibly ever.
— The View from the Blue House blog

Crime fiction doesn’t get much weirder.
–Publisher’s Weekly

Format: Paperback
Pages: 304
Imprint: Titan UK
Publication date: 01/10/2024