A body in a barrel just appeared on the shore of Lake Mead, and Lenny Battaglia is worried.

Forty years ago, when Lenny was a henchman in the Las Vegas mafia, his partner, Frank, whacked the victim, and Lenny helped dump the body. But there’s another victim in another barrel somewhere in the lake, and it’s got Lenny’s name on it. For now, that barrel’s underwater, but the drought-ravaged lake keeps dropping, and Frank is talking to the cops.

Lenny tows his fishing boat to the lake to haul his barrel farther from shore, but his boat’s too small, the barrel’s too heavy, and he’s too old. Lenny needs a new plan. Can he cover the horror of his crooked past before it catches up to him in the present?

A cross between Martin Scorsese’s Casino and Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment, Body in a Barrel is a suspenseful, gritty, noir novella about organized crime, violence, murder, fear, guilt, grace, and unlikely friendship in Sin City, inspired by true events.

“. . . a gripping crime drama novella about a man trying to free himself from the baggage of his past . . . draws you in from the very first page . . . thoroughly engrossing . . . character development is nothing short of stellar . . . excels at creating an atmosphere of tension, suspense, and intrigue . . . Recommended to readers of well-written crime thrillers.” ★★★★★ —READERS' FAVORITE

“. . . real gravitas and deeply felt humanity. Aaron Mead is a writer of tremendous skill and empathy.” —SCOTT TEEMS, WRITER-DIRECTOR-PRODUCER, The Lowdown, Narcos: Mexico, Rectify

“Taut and engrossing . . . Aaron Mead has given us crime fiction with wit and heart.” —CHAD HOLLEY, AUTHOR of Shield the Joyous: A Novel

“A tight and compelling story of regret and redemption. Body in a Barrel is . . . thrilling!” —CLAIRE GIBSON, AUTHOR of Beyond the Point: A Novel

Stefan Rudnicki

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