Hot Start
Lounging naked one sweltering night in the swimming pool of their opulent estate in seaside Rancho Bonita, an infamous big game hunter and his wife are gunned down at long range by an expert sniper. Local police quickly charge an outspoken animal rights activist with the murders, and with good reason. The evidence against him is overwhelming. But then rumors begin to surface that other suspects may have had their own reasons for wanting the couple dead. Pilot and former government operator Cordell Logan would rather not get involved in the case. He has better things to do, like trying to earn a living running his struggling flight school. However, he and the accused animal rights activist have mutual friends who persuade him to do some preliminary digging. What Logan soon discovers will lead him down a rabbit hole of deceit as vexing and potentially lethal as any he’s ever known. Pursuing the truth will expose him to a corrupt Congressman with ties to the White House, a European prostitution ring, and a ruthless Czech crime lord who will not hesitate to kill in protecting his business interests. Facebook Instagram Tumblr Hot Start Studio Review Order Now Praise For Hot Start “David Freed is unusually well equipped to tell tales like the one in his new crime novel, Hot Start. He won a Pulitzer Prize covering the police for The Los Angeles Times, covered war in Kuwait and Iraq, worked for a government security agency…and is an experienced pilot. Like his protagonist, Cordell Logan, he owns his own airplane. The result is another well-written yarn with both a streak of quirky humor and a sense of authenticity.” –Associated Press “Fast paced with generous dollops of humor and populated with vividly crafted and colorful characters.” -Library Journal (starred review) “Freed’s fifth mystery has a great pace, abundant humor, and a lively cast of supporting characters.” –Kirkus Reviews “Packed with rim-shot snappy dialogue and sharply barbed observations, David Freed’s Hot Start is a tasty romp. When it’s time to choose the right moments for Buddha and the right moments for something stronger, Cordell Logan is the right guy for the job. You’ll find him in the fray, cool as a cucumber and ready to fire off the next one-liner.” –The New York Journal of Books “A double murder propels Logan’s well-paced, action-filled fifth mystery featuring flight instructor and former government assassin Cordell Logan….as he deals smoothly with thugs, prostitutes, politicians, and other lowlifes enroute to a satisfying conclusion.” –Publishers Weekly Order Now
Fangs Out
With his execution moments away, the condemned killer of famous Vietnam War pilot-hero Hub Walker’s daughter makes a stunning assertion: the real murderer is a prominent U.S. defense contractor and close friend of Walker’s. Incensed by what he regards as a groundless allegation, Walker wants to hire someone to dig up information that will debunk the convicted killer’s claims and restore his friend’s reputation. That someone turns out to be none other than Cordell Logan. Walker is a Medal of Honor recipient married to a former Playboy Playmate of the Year. They live in a mansion overlooking the Pacific in the exclusive San Diego enclave of La Jolla. Logan figures the job will be little more than a paid vacation and an opportunity to help restore his relationship with his beautiful ex-wife, Savannah. But soon after flying her to San Diego in his beloved, aging Cessna 172, the Ruptured Duck, Logan is sucked into a twisting vortex of lies as perplexing as it is potentially deadly. The deeper he digs, the further away the truth appears to be, and the more in peril he finds himself. Who really killed Hub Walker’s daughter and why? Somebody wants to prevent Logan from finding out, and they will stop at nothing to silence him. Facebook Instagram Tumblr Fangs Out Studio Review Order Now Praise For Fangs Out “Told in first-person, Fangs Out is the second book in the widely acclaimed Cordell Logan series, and like its predecessor is filled with bullet-speed wit, original characters (and a cat to die for), plus a fast-paced and intelligent plot line, climaxing with more than one surprise…David Freed is a master of mordant one-liners for which Raymond Chandler’s leading man, Philip Marlowe, would have given his eye teeth. Highly recommended for crime and thriller fans alike.” –The New York Journal of Books “Freed’s skills as a reporter, screenwriter, and pilot made Flat Spin a delight, and Fangs Out continues that roller-coaster pleasure. Logan is a stubborn, wise-cracking, ordinary guy with some extraordinary skills and a passion for flying.” –Library Journal “Freed, an experienced pilot, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and a military affairs expert with an active security clearance, spins his suspenseful plot with the same muscular prose, hard-boiled attitude and flashes of wry humor that made the first Cordell Logan novel a critical success.” –Bruce DeSilva, Associated Press “An intriguing mystery. When Logan is in the air, Freed’s series really takes off.” –Booklist “Filled with humor and pop culture references, Fangs Out is a quick read that will leave even the most jaded reader eager for Cordell’s next adventure. Oh, and about that title. You are just going to have to read the book to find out what the term means.” –Bolo Books “Fangs Out is a fast-paced, lean plot which positively crackles with wit and invention.” –Thinking About Books “In Freed’s crackling second mystery…the appeal Logan, a wise-cracking, marriage-challenged loner trying to practice Buddhist tenets, once again proves his mettle as both pilot and investigator.” –Publishers Weekly “Freed entertains with the wisecracking Logan and a catalogue of offbeat characters. But is is not all humor. Freed, whose own flying experience is front and center and woven seamlessly into the story, has crafted a fine mystery that will keep you guessing until the very end.” –Mystery Scene Magazine “Exceptionally well-plotted with plenty of nicely positioned twists and turns and cleverly conceived paths of misdirection.” –Mysterious Reviews “All I can say is, “wow”….This one is outstanding. Action-adventure, mystery, death, and destruction, what more could a discerning reader want! The author has put together a great story.” –Paul Johnson, ReadersFavorite.com Order Now
Meet David
About David The son of a street cop, David was born in Georgia, grew up in Denver, and spent nearly two decades as an investigative journalist, mostly with the Los Angeles Times. He served as The Times’ lead police reporter, reported from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Iraq during Operation Desert Storm, was an individual finalist for the Pulitzer Prize’s Gold Medal for Public Service, the highest award in American journalism, and shared in a Pulitzer for the Times’ coverage of the 1992 Rodney King riots. David later worked as an investigator and associate field producer for CBS News before selling a screenplay to 20th Century Fox. He subsequently spent more than 10 years writing movies in Hollywood while also working as an independent contractor with the CIA, Defense Intelligence Agency, and US Army’s Battle Command Battle Lab. Since then, he has written extensively for national magazines, including Air & Space Smithsonian, where was a contributing editor, and the Atlantic, where his expose, “The Wrong Man,” was honored by the American Society of Magazine Editors as one of the year’s best feature stories. David is a former special assistant professor of journalism at Colorado State University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree and is a member of CSU’s Media Hall of Fame. In 2018, he was honored as the university’s College of Liberal Arts Distinguished Alumnus. He holds a Master of Liberal Arts degree from Harvard University and currently serves as a creative writing instructor at Harvard’s Extension School. When not teaching, writing, or flying his airplane, you can find him at home in Santa Barbara, California, playing with his Australian shepherd, Oz, and working on the next Cordell Logan mystery. “Deep Fury” is the seventh installment in his critically acclaimed Cordell Logan mystery series. Published Works “The First U.S. General to Call Trump a Bigot”The Atlantic “California’s Camarillo Airport is Nirvana for Small Airplanes”Air & Space Smithsonian “We Built This City”Air & Space Smithsonian “Meet the Jets Competing to Become the Next Air Force Trainer”Air& Space Smithsonian “Vietnam, the CIA, and the World’s Fastest Aircraft”Air & Space Smithsonian “Cameramen in Vietnam”Air & Space Smithsonian “The Missile Men of North Vietnam”Air & Space Smithsonian “Crime Pays”United Airlines Rhapsody magazine Air Boomtown: Gulfstreams and Dassault Falcons crowd the skies over Williston, North Dakota.Pacific Standard magazine The pilots and fans dedicated to prolonging the stardom of the venerable Beech 18.Air & Space Smithsonian Emissary: Never send a man to do a robot’s missionAir & Space Smithsonian California’s Medical Marijuana MorassMiller-McCune The Wrong Man: FBI Anthrax InvestigationThe Atlantic Audio Interview with David Freed regarding FBI anthrax investigationNational Public Radio News Analysis: LAPD Slow in Coping with Wave of Unrest: Response: But the rapidly unfolding violence might have overwhelmed any police department.LA Times Ride-Sharing With the Rich: How Fractional Jet Owners Get Out of Flying CoachAir & Space Smithsonian Crime Overloads L.A. Justice SystemLA Times Special Investigations Section: Watching Crime Happen: LAPD’s Secret SIS Unit : Citizens Terrorized as Police Look On LA Times Facebook Twitter Instagram Tumblr