A Well Known Secret
by Jim Fusilli

Hailed by both the Chicago Tribune and the Detroit Free Press as one of the best mysteries of 2001, Closing Time firmly established Jim Fusilli as a writer to watch and introduced readers to Terry Orr, his precocious daughter, Bella, and what The New York Times called "the vital citizens of Fusilli's gorgeous nightmare of a city." In A Well-Known Secret, Terry's life is turned upside down while the city around him reels. Terry's latest case concerns Sonia Salgado, recently released after thirty years in prison for the robbery and murder of diamond dealer Asher Glatzer. When Terry discovers her battered body in an East Village halfway house, the ensuing investigation leads him back to the brutal city of the seventies, where seeds of corruption were first sown. Terry is soon at odds with an influential cop harboring family secrets; a smooth-talking Hispanic civic leader; and Julie Giada, the angel in the DA's office. At the same time, Terry tries to do right by daughter Bella while grappling with the memories of his lost wife and son and a forever-changed New York City. An "imaginative, daring writer" (Publishers Weekly), Fusilli delivers another beautifully moody and atmospheric winner.

Other Books by Jim Fusilli

Hard, Hard City

Tribeca Blues

A Well-Known Secret

Closing Time

Jim Fusilli's Bio

Jim Fusilli is the author of the award-winning Terry Orr series, which includes his current novel Hard, Hard City, as well as Closing Time, A Well-Known Secret and Tribeca Blues. He also writes for The Wall Street Journal, for which he has served as a rock and pop critic since 1983, and is a contributor to National Public Radio's All Things Considered. In 2002 and 2003, Jim served as the mystery fiction critic for The Boston Globe.

Jim's crime series, which features private investigator Terry Orr and his teenage daughter Bella, has enjoyed glowing reviews from readers and critics.

"A wonderful new voice," reported The Providence Journal. "Superior," said The Boston Globe, which called Jim a "courageous and original writer who works against the grain of expectations."

"Fusilli is simply incredible," said Bookreporter.com. "(He) is that rare writer who both created and fulfilled the promise of greatness of his first novel...the ongoing creation of a new legend."

Jim has been praised for his vivid prose, particularly his depiction of his beloved New York City. Said The New York Times, "Jim Fusilli's noir novels are like cobblestones - smooth and hard and deeply embedded in the streets of New York." According to Kirkus Reviews, Jim's " noir prose is peerless, as is his darkly romantic portrait of the Big Apple." And The Washington Post said, "If you've ever been in love with New York City - even for an instant - this book is for you."

Of Closing Time, the debut novel in the series, Robert B. Parker said, "Jim Fusilli paints a dead-perfect picture of contemporary New York City. It is a lovely story, full of tension and heartbreak, and, in the relationship between Terry Orr and his 12-year-old daughter, renders the intricacies of parenthood as few novels have."

Jim lives in New York City with his wife Diane, a public relations executive; their daughter Cara attends college in New York. In 2005, Jim's book on Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys' album "Pet Sounds" will be published by Continuum.