Dead-Bang by Ed Naha

 

(1989: movie tie-in, based on Robert Foster and Jerry Beck’s screenplay)

From the back cover

“Detective Beck thought he’d seen it all, until now.

“A quick stop market on a deserted street. A trigger-happy killer with a strange tattoo. A brutal double-shooting, and a cop murdered.

“It’s more than just a robbery gone awry. For L.A. detective Jerry Beck, it’s the start of a pursuit that will take him halfway across the country—and into the soul of hatred and fear. Where a ruthless army of conspirators would rather die than surrender.

“Based on the real-life experience of a Los Angles homicide detective [Jerry Beck], Dead-Bang is a the exciting story of a dangerous and frightening manhunt. . .”

 

Review

Dead-Bang is a straightforward, starkly and solidly written mission-bent-rogue-cop pursuing what appears to be questionable case book, in this instance a cop-killer with ties to a conspiracy-minded white supremacy group. It sports an effective twist near the end, making it memorable for a brief second, but otherwise don’t expect too much (aside from a fast, entertaining read) from this movie tie-in novel.

The John Frankenheimer-directed film on which it’s based was released stateside on March 24, 1989. Don Johnson played Det. Jerry Beck.