An ex-homicide cop turned PI is on the trail of a murderous psychopath terrorizing Los Angeles in this crime thriller series debut.

They call him the Skull Cracker Killer. He drugs his victims. Breaks open their skulls with a hammer and chisel. The rest is inhuman.

Five years ago he terrorized New York City, claiming twelve victims before the killing stopped. Now he's racking up victims on a fresh hunting ground. Where former LAPD homicide detective Morris Brick is working as a consultant on a serial-killer film. Where a desperate mayor pleads with Brick to take on the case. And where the only way he can stop the next wave of murders is by outsmarting a madman—before he strikes again, this time much too close to home . . .

"Whether he's writing as Dave Zeltserman or Jacob Stone, you can expect the best in suspense writing." —Max Allan Collins

"A fascinating and exciting blend of misdirection, topsy-turvy, and violence." —Reed Farrel Coleman

"A dark and different serial killer novel that will haunt the reader long after the book is closed." —John Lutz

"Los Angeles has seldom seen such grisly fun. It's James Ellroy meets Alfred Hitchcock on the psychotic side of the street." —Paul Levine