PRAISE FOR FIVE DECEMBERS BY JAMES KESTREL, FINALIST FOR THE EDGAR, HAMMETT AND BRAM STOKER AWARDS
"Hard-as-nails mystery/suspense/noir set against a backdrop of war in the Pacific. One hell of a good story." - Stephen King
“War, imprisonment, torture, romance…The novel has an almost operatic symmetry, and Kestrel turns a beautiful phrase.” -
The New York Times, Best Mystery Novels of 2021
“Lyrical, violent, intelligent, breathtaking: this is an unforgettable book.” - Wall Street Journal
"This is hardboiled fiction at its best: an exceptional tale, filled with emotion, plenty of surprises, and enough violence to satisfy the most bloodthirsty reader." -
Library Journal, Starred Review
"Vivid, richly detailed... This tale of love, courage, hardship, and devotion is unforgettable"
Publishers Weekly, Starred Review and Editor's Choice
"Magnificent... a transcendent love story and a gripping thriller... it works superbly... plot strands come together exquisitely in a truly breathtaking finale that is unbearably violent one moment and tearfully tender the next... Give this special novel the word of mouth it so richly deserves."
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Booklist, Starred Review &
Booklist's Best Books of the Year
"It’s never easy to challenge the expectations of a beloved genre successfully, but Kestrel has done just that, growing an adventure story far beyond the expectations of a noir murder mystery."
Los Angeles Review of Books"Kestrel’s expertly clipped descriptive passages and dialogue bring his spacious canvas into razor-sharp focus." -
Kirkus Reviews"A gripping, resonant neo-noir odyssey" -
New York Magazine
"A great blend of crime, war, and history." The New York Post
"2021 was a memorable reading year, and I can’t think of a better way to close it out than with this unique mystery, which will engage you from start to finish." - Bookreporter
"I doubt I’ll read a more satisfying novel this year... This book is the work of a true craftsman."
-Morning Star"A well-written and suspenseful crime thriller" - Washington Times
“
Five Decembers is absolutely terrific. I can’t remember the last novel I read that was so beautifully immersive. A joy to read.” -Lou Berney
"
Five Decembers is really excellent. A first-rate book." -James Fallows
"A crime epic for the ages." -Dennis Lehane
"What a story! Totally engrossing, beautifully written, sometimes shocking and very moving."
-Elly Griffiths
"
Five Decembers is a masterpiece. You'll stay up all night with this one. It’s unique and it’s terrific."
-Eric Redman, author of The Dance of Legislation and Bones of Hilo
"Utterly enthralling. Wildly ambitious and deeply haunting,
Five Decembers drops you in the middle of a dark noir dream full of heat, loss and memory. Not to be missed" -Megan Abbott
"James Kestrel evokes the Hawaii, the Hong Kong and the Tokyo of the 1940s with an urgency, a vividness—a passion—few of us can have met before. Read this book for its palpitating story, its perfect emotional and physical detailing and, most of all, for its unforgettable conjuring of a steamy quicksilver world that will be new to almost every reader." -Pico Iyer
“The definition of a page-turner… an emotionally charged crime novel shaped by the tragic years of a world at war, a story that is relentlessly hopeful in the face of unrequited devotion and doomed love.”
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Every Read Thing“Loved every page. A brilliant wartime noir that entangles you in a mystery while transporting you to a different age.” - Mason Cross
”I was completely blown away by
Five Decembers. It is one of best novels I have read about the twilight days of empire, its protagonist getting caught up in the maelstrom of the British, Japanese and European empires dragging themselves into oblivion. ” -Steven Powell
“One of the most stunning and brilliant modern novels I have read.” - Peter Cozzens
“What a wonderful book
Five Decembers is! One of the best hardboiled mysteries I've read in years, and an epic war story and love story to boot.” - James Reasoner
"A gripping, taut, magnificent saga unlike anything we’ve ever read in our life. No understatement there. It is a work of power, brilliant plotting, heart and grace"
-Pulp Fiction Reviews"Everything about this book is terrific... If I were to recommend just one 2021 title for you to read, it would be this one. It’s that good." -
Deadly Pleasures
"Unravels much like a traditional mystery, albeit a superior one.... as much a love story as a mystery, if not more...an undoubted success." -CrimeFictionLover
"As James Ellroy might say, 'Don’t pay the rent. Buy this book!'” --Steve Powell, The Venetian Vase
"
Five Decembers feels like it could have been written during the golden age of noir… hugely satisfying.” - SFBook Review
"An electrifying thriller set in the Pacific theatre of World War II" - The Straits Times
ACCLAIM FOR THE AUTHOR’S EARLIER WORK:
"Suspense that never stops."
James Patterson
"An electrifying read."
Stephen King
