A bookish police detective and his roller derby star partner
investigate a quirky mystery involving superintelligent animals,
military conspiracy ... and murder.
When a body is found in the River Arts District of Asheville, North
Carolina, the man on the case is police lieutenant Ira Segal, recently
returned to semi-active status after being shot in the line of duty.
Segal, who carries Elmore Leonard paperbacks as security blankets, isn't
sure he's up to investigating a murder, and neither is his partner,
military veteran and local roller derby star Sgt. Dinah "Dinosaur"
Rudisill.
Segal discovers that the victim worked for the mysterious start-up
company Creatures 2.0, which trains animals to acquire uncanny
capabilities. Creature 2.0's eccentric founder, Francis Elah, has gone
missing, and no one can find him, not even Elah's top client, the Office
of Naval Intelligence.
As Segal and Rudisill investigate the murder and Elah's disappearance,
they meet the bizarre animals Elah trained, including a raccoon who
rolls cigarettes, pigeons who follow a priest to church, and a
superintelligent crow who keeps bringing evidence to the detectives'
attention. When the trail leads to a shadowy military contractor, more
murders, and a threat to national security, Segal and Rudisill face a
dangerous confrontation, and the only thing they can trust is each
other.
Witty, engaging and fast-paced, As the Crow Dies is a mystery that
veers from the norm in unexpectedly delightful ways.
