A writer-at-large for the Dallas Morning News, Howard Swindle has been nominated for an Edgar Award and has received national attention for his first novel, Jitter Joint. Swindle's flair for edgy suspense is sharply defined in this successor, which challenges Dallas homicide detective Jeb Quinlin with a perplexing and far-reaching case. Newspaper reporter Richard Carlisle is not liked or admired by his colleagues. When his body is discovered by the side of a road, no one sheds any tears. What the autopsy report reveals, however, catches Detective Quinlin's attention. Instead of a bullet or knife, the unlucky reporter was murdered by an injection of snake venom. What was the young man investigating? And who used such a bizarre method to silence him? Pulling together the evidence, Quinlin soon finds himself pitted against one of the most powerful, and dangerous, families in Texas. Narrator Richard Ferrone captures the detective's canny intuition and gruff courage as he dodges mounting threats and deadly bullets.