Private investigator and Melbournite John Dorn is down and out, surrounded by crooks and his own slowly disintegrating world. But John is determined, quietly honest, and smart enough to stand back and look at the reasons why crimes play out the way they do.

So we get the story of JD’s darkest days in ten tales – like the small-time criminal with guns mysteriously all over his house, the man researching his future wife, or JD’s final search for a missing teenager.

All of them challenge the reader’s views, with characters behaving unexpectedly or expecting the world to bend to them.

Zane Lovitt is a judge’s clerk and these stories are based on true cases, smacking of grit and realism, which is not to overlook the fact that The Midnight Promise is flat-out one of the most enjoyable crime books out there.

Australian noir with a nod to Raymond Carver – there’s lots of drinking, dark streets, and wisecracks that you’ll grin like mad over. Every story is its own little world, all completely satisfying but so involving you’ll put the book down wishing for more.

[[fiona-hardy-pic]]Fiona Hardy