Bad Cop

Bad Cop is the second book in Peter Sarda's hardboiled crime thriller series, Hamburg Noir, which Publishers Weekly recommends for fans of Dashiell Hammett, James M. Cain, Philip Kerr, Jakob Arjouni, and Simone Buchholz. "A strong sequel and a pitch-dark noir pulsing with action in its own right, Bad Cop will keep thriller readers engaged and eager for more." - Publishers Weekly (Editor's Pick) "With two classic noir protagonists, sharp dialogue, and a sinister edge of vigilante justice on the gritty streets of Hamburg, Sarda's latest installment is a solid and satisfying work of crime fiction that improves on its predecessor." - SPR "A brisk thriller that features vivid storytelling, committed heroes, and modern political intrigue." - Kirkus Reviews After putting away the head of the Albanian mafia in Hamburg, Homicide Detectives Thomas Ritter and Motz Beck are confronted with a bloody war to control the local drug trade in the mobster's absence. First an Albanian courier is shotgunned to death at the edge of Hamburg Harbor. Then a Hells Angel gets the same treatment on the Alster River. As the bodies pile up, Ritter and Beck are forced to work with an organized crime expert, a burned-out narcotics agent with his own drug issues. Before long, they suspect that their new partner is working for one of the rival gangs. Peter Sarda (www.peter-sarda.com) is a third-generation Californian who has lived and worked in Hamburg, Germany, for over two decades. His hardboiled crime thriller series, Hamburg Noir, is set in his adoptive home, a rugged harbor town with lots of old trading money, a "sinful mile" devoted to the world's oldest profession, and a robust and colorful criminal underworld. Edda Green, the third book in the series, is cited in The Strand Mystery Magazine's spring 2025 list of "Books you need to read." As a member of the Crime Writers' Association, Sarda contributes to Red Herrings magazine and CWA Readers' News. He is a "shamus" of the Film Noir Foundation and the primary source for "Crime and the City: Hamburg" on CrimeReads.