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SUNSTROKE is the blazingly original debut from the most exciting new voice in crime fiction today–a superbly crafted modern noir filled with secrets, heartbreak, and mordant humor.
Gloria Mendez is thirty-six, single, and hopelessly in love with her oblivious boss, a soft-spoken loner twenty years her senior. Her friends might urge her to look for someone more her age, but Gloria knows the real thing when she sees it.
So when he disappears while on vacation in Mexico, it’s Gloria who goes in search of him. As she follows his trail deep into the desert, she runs face-first into a staggering history of betrayal and death: the wreckage of a hidden past. Carl Perreira was not the man she thought she knew—nor was he anything she could have imagined.
Her journey will teach her as much about herself as it does about Carl. And as she plunges closer to his fleeing shadow, she will find herself fighting not only for the truth, but for her life.
Serpentine, thought provoking, and brimming with edge-of-the-seat suspense, SUNSTROKE is everything a thriller should be. More than a great read, it’s the start of a brilliant career.
Reviews for Sunstroke
A superb debut thriller about love, lust, vengeance, murder, and a good girl coping… Funny, exciting and stylishly written—a tour de force not to be missed.
– Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
In his extraordinarily self-assured debut novel, [Kellerman] shows that he could probably take us on a compelling journey to the water cooler… This tightly focused thriller features expertly drawn characters, vivid scenes, and simmering tension… There’s plenty of heat here to justify the buzz.
- Booklist
Kellerman’s playwriting background shines through in this wonderful portrait of a woman who expresses intimacies solely in her mind. It’s a slow-burning, sunbaked noir treat. Grade: A-
- Entertainment Weekly
Finally, a thriller that delivers. Compelling, well-written, and filled with wonderfully real characters, SUNSTROKE is a dynamite debut, and Jesse Kellerman is the real thing.
– Harlan Coben
An intriguing setup, executed with finesse…kept me guessing right down to the end. A masterly debut!
– Sue Grafton
A keen storyteller who writes in a style that’s boldly his own…Kellerman applies that distinctive voice to an offbeat suspense story… Cinematic… Kellerman uses a seductive style–a kind of magic realism that suits the miragelike landscape–to ensnare us in his characters’ lives and make us feel, like Gloria, that we’re trapped in a hypnotic dream.
- The New York Times Book Review
Kellerman’s prose sings…his ability to make vivid the hamster wheel of grief is astounding. Vivid too is his dialogue… “Sunstroke” is a finely written, sleekly plotted novel that, if relegated to the thriller category…may prevent a much wider audience from enjoying the novel’s singular charms. [Kellerman] is working on a deeper level, and what he uncovers about the secrets people keep, about what is hidden and what is revealed, makes “Sunstroke” one of the brainier, more deeply felt debuts in recent years.
- The Los Angeles Times Book Review
[An] impressive debut catapulting playwright-turned-novelist Kellerman into the first ranks of mystery/suspense writers. The dialogue crackles, and the plot briskly and plausibly moves ahead. Places, characters and emotions are superbly evoked… This is a page-turner whodunit with an impressive dose of Dostoyevsky.
- Forbes
Talent breeds true. Cool…cerebral…literary… [R]eaders will enjoy the intrepid Gloria and her puzzle.
– Publishers Weekly
Quite simply brilliant.
– Robert B. Parker
Beautifully written—you can’t stop reading.Jesse Kellerman is an exciting new voice in the mystery field. Don’t miss it.
– Tony Hillerman
Jesse Kellerman takes us on a frightening journey into dangerous territory with twists and turns that will leave you breathless.
– Nelson DeMille
In a league of its own. Beautifully written, richly textured with compelling characters, and dominated by an intricate plot overflowing with edge-of-the-seat suspence and surprises…a thought-provoking, dynamic thriller… Rating: 4.5/5.
- Mystery News
Gloria’s story is told in pitch-perfect prose, and Kellerman’s depiction of the lives of Hispanic Americans is solid. There are some fine twists, and all the characters maintain their psychological integrity.This is a helluva debut.
- The Toronto Globe & Mail
Bound to get a great deal of extra attention…I’d say he deserves it. An unusual and gripping novel that merits reading… There are twists and turns aplenty…
- Publishing News (starred review)
