Ex-Con #4

Duane Swierczynski and Keith Burns's noir crime series hits its fourth chapter with a cover by Tim Bradstreet that perfectly captures the series' brooding tension — a sunglasses-wearing man emerges from deep shadow with a revolver raised, ringed by hypnotic concentric circles and silhouetted palm trees that give the scene a sun-scorched, dangerous edge. The moody, high-contrast imagery sets a gritty tone that fans of hard-boiled crime fiction will find genuinely compelling. "The Black Angel's Death Song" is a title that promises nothing less than serious consequences, and this 2014 Dynamite release delivers on that atmosphere before you've even cracked the cover.