Past Darkness: A Karl Kane Novel

“Sam Millar’s Karl Kane series is one of the high points in crime writing today. Millar can string words together like diamonds on a necklace and craft a hell of a good tale, but Kane, his protagonist, is what makes the series a gem. Childhood trauma damaged him so severely that it was like a napalm strike on his psyche. Kane is kind to his friends, a blight on those who threaten the people he cares about. Kane is the kind of guy you’d call up for a beer and a good chat, or if you needed help dumping the body of the guy you just shot in the head. Who could ask for more? Totally addictive and brilliant.” James Thompson, international bestselling author, Snow Angels and inspector Kari Vaara series

“Sam Millar’s latest Karl Kane thriller places him alongside such genre greats as Harlan Coben and Lisa Gardner. The aptly titled, neo-noir Past Darkness is a taut, twisty and terrific tale about people pushed to their emotional limits forced to battle demons that refuse to go away, including the darkly heroic Kane himself who confronts his own painful past while investigating another family’s. Powerful and told at break-neck pace, this is Millar’s best and most telling Kane yet. Don't let this one get past you!" Jon Land, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Strong Darkness

“Karl is Everyman, forever walking wide-eyed into trouble but always managing to avoid disaster. In previous books Karl merely faced death. In Past Darkness he also has to face down the horrors of his own childhood. A grisly tale grippingly told by an author whose words burrow down into the most squeamish parts of our psyche.” John McAllister, critically acclaimed author, The Station Sergeant and Barlow by the Book

“This amazing novel unleashes a torrent of savagery, made bearable by Irish author Millar's considerable literary gifts. The novel is a series of horrific incidents, kidnapping, blackmailing, torture, murder whose interconnection is revealed with a crash in the last pages. These moments can leave readers reeling, all the while fully aware of just how talented a writer Millar is.” Don Crinklaw, Booklist

“Totally gripping. Millar blends old-fashioned gumshoe noir with the latest in high technology to build a nail-biter that sneaks up on you.” Publisher’s Weekly, USA

“Sam Millar is Stephen King with a sense of humor, a writer at the height of his powers in this, the fourth Karl Kane thriller, Past Darkness, a sly and sinister page-turner that is at once chilling and suspenseful, and equally insightful and entertaining about the nature of good and evil. Kane, the pestered private investigator, is a cool character, intensely human, a denizen of Belfast, tough at times, but also charitable and morally conflicted at others. Brilliant storytelling.” Richard Torregrossa, bestselling American crime writer, Terminal Life: A Suited Hero Novel

“If Charles Dickens were a thriller writer, Past Darkness would be his masterpiece. But Sam Millar beat him to it with his latest can’t put down Karl Kane noir thriller. Millar’s acclaimed descriptive powers once again fashion some of fiction’s darkest characters, ones your soul wishes did not exist even though your mind knows are out there. Past Darkness is another winner from the very gifted Millar.” Jeffrey Siger, international bestselling author, Sons of Sparta