An Ex-Cop Who Lost Everything. A Killer Who Will Stop At Nothing. In the exclusive enclave of Grosse Pointe, Michigan, a woman who builds custom guitars is murdered. A disgraced ex-cop turned private investigator is hired by the dead woman's father and immediately becomes the target of a violent ex-convict. An enigmatic music star performs damage control on her links to the dead woman. And a professional killer who idolizes Keith Richards is brought into town by a mysterious employer. Dead Wood is what great mysteries are all about: love, hate, faith and vengeance, all wrapped up in an explosive story that simply refuses to let up. "Dead Wood is a fast-paced, unpredictable mystery with an engaging narrator and a rich cast of original supporting characters." -Thomas Perry, Edgar-winning author of The Butcher's Boy. "From its opening lines, Dan Ames and his private eye novel DEAD WOOD recall early James Ellroy: a fresh attitude and voice and the heady rush of boundless yearning and ambition. Ames delivers a vivid evocation of time and place in a way that few authors achieve, nailing the essence of his chosen corner of high-tone Michigan. This is the first new private eye novel in a long time that just swept me along for the ride. " - Edgar-nominated author Craig McDonald "Dan Ames's writing reminds me of the great thriller writers -- lean, mean, no nonsense prose that gets straight to the point and keeps you turning those pages." --author Robert Gregory Browne "As gritty as the Detroit streets where it's set, DEAD WOOD grabs you early on and doesn't let go. As fine a a debut as you'll come across this year, maybe any year." --author Tom Schreck

The First Three Full-Length Books in a Bestselling, Award-Winning Mystery Series DEAD WOOD (John Rockne Mystery #1) In the exclusive enclave of Grosse Pointe, Michigan, a woman who builds custom guitars is murdered. A disgraced ex-cop turned private investigator is hired by the dead woman’s father and immediately becomes the target of a violent ex-convict. An enigmatic music star performs damage control on her links to the dead woman. And a professional killer who idolizes Keith Richards is brought into town by a mysterious employer. DEAD WOOD is what great mysteries are all about: love, hate, faith and vengeance, all wrapped up in an explosive story that simply refuses to let up. HARD ROCK (John Rockne Mystery #2) Private Investigator John Rockne is determined to find out who is responsible for the brutal murder of a young man in Grosse Pointe. A contract killer known only as The Spook wants to keep the truth buried forever. Rockne quickly uncovers a series of dark secrets with ties to his own tortured past. HARD ROCK is a thrilling conclusion to the bestselling crime novel DEAD WOOD. COLD JADE (John Rockne Mystery #3) Once a cop in the well-to-do Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe, John Rockne was dismissed from the force after making a tragic mistake that resulted in the brutal murder of a young man. Now working as a private investigator, John is hired by a man whose daughter is missing and he soon discovers the young woman was living a secret life under the name Jade. John quickly realizes the world Jade had entered was a dangerous one filled with thieves, drugs, pimps and murderers. He has no idea if he can find her…and bring her out alive. “Dan Ames' writing reminds me of the great thriller writers -- lean, mean, no nonsense prose that gets straight to the point and keeps you turning those pages.” --Robert Gregory Browne, author of Down Among the Dead Men "As gritty as the Detroit streets where it's set, DEAD WOOD grabs you early on and doesn't let go. As fine a debut as you'll come across this year, maybe any year." --Tom Schreck, author of Out Cold, A Duffy Dombrowski Mystery

Long Distance Murder. Nick Giordano is a renowned neurologist and family man living in the wealthy Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe. When he is murdered during a sailboat race, no one sees it coming. Private investigator John Rockne investigates the killing and soon unravels a web of greed and betrayal. A hard-hitting, action-packed story in the bestselling and award-winning John Rockne Mystery Series. "This is the best new private investigator mystery series being written today." -Amazon.com

Something Very Bad Is Happening In Good Isle. A picture-postcard beautiful little town on the shore of Lake Michigan, Good Isle is where the wealthy buy summer homes. Bad things just don’t happen in this quaint little town. That is, until Billy “Dynamite” Dawkins, a legend in Detroit’s boxing history, disappears. John and Ellen Rockne, both in Good Isle for different reasons, are asked to look into the famous boxer’s disappearance. Before long, they are both drawn into a dark side of Good Isle that until now, had remained the town’s most notorious secret. “Fast-paced, engaging, original.” –New York Times bestselling author Thomas Perry “Swept me along for the ride.” –Edgar-nominated author Craig McDonald “Lean and mean.” –author Robert Gregory Browne “Grabs you early and doesn’t let go.” –author Tom Schreck

COLD JADE is the newest novel in the acclaimed John Rockne series by award-winning and international bestselling author Dan Ames. Once a cop in the well-to-do Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe, John Rockne was dismissed from the force after making a tragic mistake that resulted in the brutal murder of a young man. Now working as a private investigator, John is hired by a man whose daughter is missing and he soon discovers the young woman was living a secret life under the name Jade. John quickly realizes the world Jade had entered was a dangerous one filled with thieves, drugs, pimps and murderers. He has no idea if he can find her…and bring her out alive.

“Fast-paced, original, engaging…” New York Times bestselling author Thomas Perry Private Investigator John Rockne is determined to find out who is responsible for the brutal murder of a young man in Grosse Pointe. A contract killer known only as The Spook wants to keep the truth buried forever. Rockne quickly uncovers a series of dark secrets with ties to his own tortured past. HARD ROCK is a thrilling conclusion to the bestselling crime novel DEAD WOOD. “The first private eye novel in a long time that just swept me along for the ride.” Edgar-nominated author Craig McDonald

The dead man's life is over. The killer is just getting started. A USA TODAY BESTSELLING AUTHOR A totally gripping brand-new John Rockne mystery thriller. When a dead man shows up on one of the most exclusive golf courses in Grosse Pointe, his widow hires John Rockne to figure out who killed him and why. The problem is, the number of people who hated the victim is higher than the man's typical golf score. And he wasn't a good golfer. "Engaging, original, fast-paced." -New York Times bestselling author Thomas Perry "Ames is a sensation." -MysteryTribune