p.html

"A seductive tale that tightens its
embrace with each turn of the page."
- The Austin Chronicle

Pariah

In Aspen, ex-hippies drive Volvos, ski bums cut million-dollar deals, and Sheriff Kurt Muller is the law: a single father with a checkered past and the notion that right and wrong still matter. But one evening, against his better judgement, Muller spends the night comforting an old flame, a reclusive heiress named Nicole Bauer who's convinced her ex-lover, the 60s blues idol Rocky Rhodes. Rocky's body was found on the grounds of the Bauer mansion, and Nicole was charged with his murder. But the next morning Nicole is found dead, and Kurt is a prime suspect. To clear his name and find her killer, he begins his own investigation, digging through the shady profiles of Nicole's jet-set contemporaries, and the mystery of Rocky's death. Amaid the sin, sorrow and secrets of the living, Kurt stumbles across a mysterious woman once called Pariah - who hides her past, a butterfly tattoo, and the key to Nicole's final hours.

Praise for PARIAH

"Pariah evokes the poignancy of the lost sixties and the money-madness of contemporary Aspen with nonstop plot and beautiful writing. I was guessing the outcome all the way - and then, I didn't want it to end."
- April Smith, author of Be the One and North of Montana

"Zigal's twisting plot loops around a cadre of intriguing villians. Against the backdrop of Aspen's natural beauty, he creates a chilling tale, though one leavened with wry humor."
- Publisher's Weekly

"A RIVETING STORY of passion, horror, and misguided allegiance."
-Library Journal

"Kurt Muller, the reformed-hippie sheriff of Aspen, remains one of the most interesting characters on the American mystery scene and Pariah is Tom Zigal's best book yet. The suspense - and wit - are unrelenting. A hugely enjoyable book."
- Scott Turow

"A SMARTLY PLOTTED AND NEATLY PACED MYSTERY -
HANDICAPPED ONE CLUE AT A TIME."
- The Austin Chronicle

"A fine stir-fry of a book, replete with sad, aged hippies, former freaks evolved into rich yuppies, and a community trending in the same direction. Book by book, Muller, his deputies, and the environs of Muller's Aspen become more complex, nuanced, and engaging."
- Booklist

"A MESMERIZING READ . . . [Zigal] entertains us with tight prose and a hair-raising plot . . his talent culminates in a book that is well structured, taut and downright creepy."
- Austin American-Statesman

"I am in awe of Zigal's ability to break your heart while entertaining the hell out of you . . . I didn't want it to end."
-April Smith, author of Be the One

All information on this page was borrowed from my own copy of PARIAH
published by Dell Publishing, a division of Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc