#13: Bluff City Brawler by Heath Lowrance and Jack Tunney

A palooka accidentally kills a mobster in a bar fight, and goes on the run; naturally, he doesn't run quite far enough in Bluff City Brawler, a brawny entry in the Fight Card ebook series.

I have, by and large, enjoyed this compact, unassuming series of books harking back to the dime novels of old.  I selected this one because of interest in the author and found that it hit all the right beats (so to speak) as our protagonist brushes up against cold-blooded henchmen, gold-hearted women, craggy-faced managers, and straight-arrow cops (among other archetypes).

Enjoyable for fans of old-fashioned adventure and crime stories.  I bought this for my beloved Kindle and read it quickly.

#12: The Black Box by Michael Connelly

Cold case detective Harry Bosch goes back, on the anniversary of the L.A. riots, to a murder from that time period that has always plagued his conscience; soon he is right back in a case that stretches from the California 'burbs to the first Desert Storm in Michael Connelly's The Black Box.

Connelly's Harry Bosch novels are, I believe, one of the great contemporary crime series and one whose latest additions I am always quick to pick up and read (This one I nabbed from the Farmland Public Library).

The last few novels have especially built a head of steam, seemingly heading towards Bosch's retirement (if he doesn't go out with a bang in some way).  A bit hard to pick up and fully appreciate without having read Connelly before, but recommended for fans.

#11: Cold As Hell by Anthony Neil Smith

A virus gets loose in a snowstorm, pitting our protagonist (who is blessed/cursed with being able to see evil in others) with his grandpa's trusty axe against a legion of foes in Anthony Neil Smith's Cold As Hell.

This horror/thriller is the latest in the Dead Man series, an easily-digestible ebook collection--by various authors--centered on the premise of a drifter rooting out evil as he wanders the countryside.  This entry read much less like a Dead Man book (which often center around a fiendish antagonist called Mr. Dark) and more like a standalone thriller with some of the series parameters bolted on.

But it is still a fun read, as our hero--stranded with other drivers and various characters along a desolate stretch of interstate--contend with containment of the virus as well as its impact on the victims.

I selected this one, like the previous one I read by Christa Faust, because of interest in the author, and found his writing enjoyable.

I have liked this series for the most part and borrowed this one for my beloved Kindle, reading it quickly.