Harry Dolan's Blog
August 9, 2024
The Wall Street Journal reviews DON'T TURN AROUND
My thriller DON'T TURN AROUND is available now in hardcover, audio, and ebook editions.
"Don't Turn Around mixes police procedural, small-town scandal and childhood terror in ways that will keep you reading straight until the dawn."
� Tom Nolan, Wall Street Journal
Read the full review here:
Don't Turn Around
From the dust jacket:
The police call him Merkury. He’s a killer who seems to choose his victims at random. He leaves no evidence behind, and no witnesses. Except for one.
When Kate Summerlin was eleven years old, she climbed out her bedroom window on a spring night, looking for a taste of freedom in the small college town where she and her parents were living. But what she found as she wandered in the woods near her house was something else: the body of a beautiful young woman, the first of Merkury’s victims. And before she could come to grips with what she was seeing, she heard a voice behind her, the killer’s voice, saying: “Don’t turn around.�
Now, at the age of twenty-nine, Kate is a successful true crime writer, but she has never told anyone the truth about what happened on that long-ago night. When Merkury claims yet another victim—a college student named Bryan Cayhill—Kate finds herself drawn back to the town where everything started. She sets out to make sense of this latest crime, but the deeper she gets into the story, the more she comes to realize that it isn’t over. Her search for the truth about Merkury is leading her down into a dark labyrinth, and if she hopes to escape she’ll have to meet him once again—this time face to face.
"Don't Turn Around mixes police procedural, small-town scandal and childhood terror in ways that will keep you reading straight until the dawn."
� Tom Nolan, Wall Street Journal
Read the full review here:
Don't Turn Around
From the dust jacket:
The police call him Merkury. He’s a killer who seems to choose his victims at random. He leaves no evidence behind, and no witnesses. Except for one.
When Kate Summerlin was eleven years old, she climbed out her bedroom window on a spring night, looking for a taste of freedom in the small college town where she and her parents were living. But what she found as she wandered in the woods near her house was something else: the body of a beautiful young woman, the first of Merkury’s victims. And before she could come to grips with what she was seeing, she heard a voice behind her, the killer’s voice, saying: “Don’t turn around.�
Now, at the age of twenty-nine, Kate is a successful true crime writer, but she has never told anyone the truth about what happened on that long-ago night. When Merkury claims yet another victim—a college student named Bryan Cayhill—Kate finds herself drawn back to the town where everything started. She sets out to make sense of this latest crime, but the deeper she gets into the story, the more she comes to realize that it isn’t over. Her search for the truth about Merkury is leading her down into a dark labyrinth, and if she hopes to escape she’ll have to meet him once again—this time face to face.
March 20, 2024
Harry Dolan's new novel, DON'T TURN AROUND, coming April 2nd!
My new novel DON'T TURN AROUND will be published April 2nd by Grove Atlantic.
An early review from Kirkus:
“Canny spine-tingler Dolan brings his pot to such a rolling boil of violence and shocking revelations halfway through that you may wonder what could possibly follow. . . . Go ahead and suspend your disbelief. Every shiver will tell you it’s worth it.�
Don't Turn Around
From the dust jacket:
The police call him Merkury. He’s a killer who chooses his victims seemingly at random. He leaves no evidence behind, and no witnesses. Except for one.
When Kate Summerlin was eleven years old, she climbed out her bedroom window on a spring night, looking for a taste of freedom in the small college town where she and her parents were living. But what she found as she wandered in the woods near her house was something else: the body of a beautiful young woman, the first of Merkury’s victims. And before she could come to grips with what she was seeing, she heard a voice behind her, the killer’s voice, saying: “Don’t turn around.�
Now, at the age of twenty-nine, Kate is a successful true crime writer, but she has never told anyone the truth about what happened on that long-ago night. When Merkury claims yet another victim—a college student named Bryan Cayhill—Kate finds herself drawn back to the town where everything started. She sets out to make sense of this latest crime, but the deeper she gets into the story, the more she comes to realize that it isn’t over. Her search for the truth about Merkury is leading her down into a dark labyrinth, and if she hopes to escape she’ll have to meet him once again—this time face to face.
An early review from Kirkus:
“Canny spine-tingler Dolan brings his pot to such a rolling boil of violence and shocking revelations halfway through that you may wonder what could possibly follow. . . . Go ahead and suspend your disbelief. Every shiver will tell you it’s worth it.�
Don't Turn Around
From the dust jacket:
The police call him Merkury. He’s a killer who chooses his victims seemingly at random. He leaves no evidence behind, and no witnesses. Except for one.
When Kate Summerlin was eleven years old, she climbed out her bedroom window on a spring night, looking for a taste of freedom in the small college town where she and her parents were living. But what she found as she wandered in the woods near her house was something else: the body of a beautiful young woman, the first of Merkury’s victims. And before she could come to grips with what she was seeing, she heard a voice behind her, the killer’s voice, saying: “Don’t turn around.�
Now, at the age of twenty-nine, Kate is a successful true crime writer, but she has never told anyone the truth about what happened on that long-ago night. When Merkury claims yet another victim—a college student named Bryan Cayhill—Kate finds herself drawn back to the town where everything started. She sets out to make sense of this latest crime, but the deeper she gets into the story, the more she comes to realize that it isn’t over. Her search for the truth about Merkury is leading her down into a dark labyrinth, and if she hopes to escape she’ll have to meet him once again—this time face to face.
March 16, 2021
THE GOOD KILLER paperback edition is out now!
"A satisfying crime novel. . . . Both action junkies and readers who like their thrillers on the cerebral side will find something to enjoy."
� PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
"Propulsive. . . . Mr. Dolan's great gifts for storytelling, well displayed in his four previous books, are in even fuller evidence in 'The Good Killer,' a story somewhat larger in scope, thus allowing for yet more tension, suspense and surprising resolutions."
​� Tom Nolan, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
"Highly gratifying. . . . In just five novels, Dolan has garnered a reputation for intelligent plots that gently weave in action with his well-sculpted characters� believable motives and a soupcon of humor."
​� Oline Cogdill, ASSOCIATED PRESS
The Good Killer
Available now in bookstores and online:
� PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
"Propulsive. . . . Mr. Dolan's great gifts for storytelling, well displayed in his four previous books, are in even fuller evidence in 'The Good Killer,' a story somewhat larger in scope, thus allowing for yet more tension, suspense and surprising resolutions."
​� Tom Nolan, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
"Highly gratifying. . . . In just five novels, Dolan has garnered a reputation for intelligent plots that gently weave in action with his well-sculpted characters� believable motives and a soupcon of humor."
​� Oline Cogdill, ASSOCIATED PRESS
The Good Killer
Available now in bookstores and online:
March 6, 2020
DAILY MAIL Review of Harry Dolan's THE GOOD KILLER
The U.K. edition of THE GOOD KILLER, published by Head of Zeus, got a great review from Geoffrey Wansell in the Daily Mail:
"It is not exactly common to describe thrillers as fun and entertaining, but it's fair to say this one most certainly is.
"Former soldier Sean Tennant is living quietly in Houston, Texas, with his girlfriend Molly, when his life is thrown into chaos. A troubled loner goes on a shooting spree in a shopping mall. Tennant is there and ends the slaughter with two deadly shots, becoming a hero with his name all over the news.
"The trouble is this brings him to the attention of two men he thought he'd left in his past, and he and Molly are forced to flee.
"So begins a Bonnie and Clyde-style chase across the U.S., from Montana to Tennessee, New York to Michigan, with the pair only just ahead of their psychopathic pursuers.
"Written in Dolan's characteristically sophisticated prose, the action never stops, and the longer the chase goes on the more you sympathise with Sean and Molly."
The book is available now:
"It is not exactly common to describe thrillers as fun and entertaining, but it's fair to say this one most certainly is.
"Former soldier Sean Tennant is living quietly in Houston, Texas, with his girlfriend Molly, when his life is thrown into chaos. A troubled loner goes on a shooting spree in a shopping mall. Tennant is there and ends the slaughter with two deadly shots, becoming a hero with his name all over the news.
"The trouble is this brings him to the attention of two men he thought he'd left in his past, and he and Molly are forced to flee.
"So begins a Bonnie and Clyde-style chase across the U.S., from Montana to Tennessee, New York to Michigan, with the pair only just ahead of their psychopathic pursuers.
"Written in Dolan's characteristically sophisticated prose, the action never stops, and the longer the chase goes on the more you sympathise with Sean and Molly."
The book is available now:
February 6, 2020
CrimeReads Essay
To coincide with the publication of my new novel The Good Killer, I've written an essay for CrimeReads that discusses a few of my favorite books: "Secret Histories: Eight Compelling Crime Novels about People Haunted by Their Pasts." You can find it here:
The books I discuss are:
Down River
Pretty Girls
The Man from Primrose Lane
Dark Places
Blackburn
Long Lost
Faithful Place
Time's Witness
The books I discuss are:
Down River
Pretty Girls
The Man from Primrose Lane
Dark Places
Blackburn
Long Lost
Faithful Place
Time's Witness
February 5, 2020
The latest news about my new novel, THE GOOD KILLER
THE GOOD KILLER is available in bookstores and online now!
If you went looking for the Kindle edition of THE GOOD KILLER previously, you might not have been able to find it, due to a technical problem my publisher was having with Amazon. I'm happy to report the problem has been resolved and the Kindle version can be found here:
New reviews from The Wall Street Journal and Associated Press
"Slick and twisty. . . . Mr. Dolan’s great gifts for storytelling, well displayed in his four previous books, are in even fuller evidence in THE GOOD KILLER, a story somewhat larger in scope, thus allowing for yet more tension, suspense and surprising resolutions."
� Tom Nolan, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
"Highly gratifying. . . . In just five novels, Dolan has garnered a reputation for intelligent plots that gently weave in action with his well-sculpted characters� believable motives and a soupcon of humor."
� Oline Cogdill, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Nicola’s Books Event: Tuesday, February 11th
For readers in the Ann Arbor area, I'll be doing a reading/signing at Nicola's Books (2513 Jackson Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI 48103) on Tuesday, February 11 at 7:00 p.m. Hope to see you there!
If you went looking for the Kindle edition of THE GOOD KILLER previously, you might not have been able to find it, due to a technical problem my publisher was having with Amazon. I'm happy to report the problem has been resolved and the Kindle version can be found here:
New reviews from The Wall Street Journal and Associated Press
"Slick and twisty. . . . Mr. Dolan’s great gifts for storytelling, well displayed in his four previous books, are in even fuller evidence in THE GOOD KILLER, a story somewhat larger in scope, thus allowing for yet more tension, suspense and surprising resolutions."
� Tom Nolan, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
"Highly gratifying. . . . In just five novels, Dolan has garnered a reputation for intelligent plots that gently weave in action with his well-sculpted characters� believable motives and a soupcon of humor."
� Oline Cogdill, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Nicola’s Books Event: Tuesday, February 11th
For readers in the Ann Arbor area, I'll be doing a reading/signing at Nicola's Books (2513 Jackson Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI 48103) on Tuesday, February 11 at 7:00 p.m. Hope to see you there!
January 29, 2020
Read the opening chapters of THE GOOD KILLER
My new crime novel, THE GOOD KILLER, comes out next Tuesday, but if you're daring you can read the opening chapters on my website right this minute:
The book is available for preorder now:
The book is available for preorder now:
January 21, 2020
My new novel, THE GOOD KILLER, comes out in just two weeks!
I just wanted to pass along a pair of early reviews of my new novel, THE GOOD KILLER:
�A satisfying crime novel. . . . Both action junkies and readers who like their thrillers on the cerebral side will find something to enjoy.�
� PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
�If you’re up for a first-rate page turner, look no further than Harry Dolan’s The Good Killer. Iraq vet Sean and his partner, Molly, have been living under the radar for years, harboring a virtually priceless secret and trying to remain invisible to a pair of dangerous enemies. Then, by sheer unfortunate happenstance, Sean uses his military training to take down a spree killer in a Houston mall. Sean makes a fairly clean getaway, but his face and license plate number are captured by mall security cams, and he becomes something of a reluctant celebrity. Meanwhile, Molly is attending a yoga seminar in Montana, where she is required to surrender her cell phone and renounce all contact with the outside world. Sean has no choice but to drive there and collect her before anyone else can. He heads north in an aging Camry with a faulty alternator, woefully under-armored vis-à -vis the opposing teams. The rest of the book is basically one long and harrowing chase scene, right up to the explosive climax. Block out sufficient time to read The Good Killer in one sitting. It’ll be hard to stop once you get started.�
� Bruce Tierney, BookPage
THE GOOD KILLER comes out February 4th from The Mysterious Press/Grove Atlantic.
It’s available for preorder now:
�A satisfying crime novel. . . . Both action junkies and readers who like their thrillers on the cerebral side will find something to enjoy.�
� PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
�If you’re up for a first-rate page turner, look no further than Harry Dolan’s The Good Killer. Iraq vet Sean and his partner, Molly, have been living under the radar for years, harboring a virtually priceless secret and trying to remain invisible to a pair of dangerous enemies. Then, by sheer unfortunate happenstance, Sean uses his military training to take down a spree killer in a Houston mall. Sean makes a fairly clean getaway, but his face and license plate number are captured by mall security cams, and he becomes something of a reluctant celebrity. Meanwhile, Molly is attending a yoga seminar in Montana, where she is required to surrender her cell phone and renounce all contact with the outside world. Sean has no choice but to drive there and collect her before anyone else can. He heads north in an aging Camry with a faulty alternator, woefully under-armored vis-à -vis the opposing teams. The rest of the book is basically one long and harrowing chase scene, right up to the explosive climax. Block out sufficient time to read The Good Killer in one sitting. It’ll be hard to stop once you get started.�
� Bruce Tierney, BookPage
THE GOOD KILLER comes out February 4th from The Mysterious Press/Grove Atlantic.
It’s available for preorder now:
December 11, 2019
Publishers Weekly calls THE GOOD KILLER a "satisfying crime novel"
My new book, THE GOOD KILLER, comes out February 4th, and I just saw the first early review. Publishers Weekly writes: "Both action junkies and readers who like their thrillers on the cerebral side will find something to enjoy." Read the full review here:
October 23, 2019
THE GOOD KILLER Giveaway
The Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ giveaway for my new crime novel, THE GOOD KILLER, runs through Friday, so there's still time to enter to win an advance reading copy:
/giveaway/sh...
/giveaway/sh...
