Is This the End of Jake Lassiter?

From the messy desk of Paul Levine...

I only do this once a year.

So please bear with me.

It's what Dave Barry calls "strumpeting" your book.  Yeah, advertising its wares shamelessly, like a Times Square streetwalker.  (I know the Times Square reference is really dated, but then so am I).

So, here it is.  October 1.  Official publication date, and I'm flogging the hell out of "State vs. Lassiter," the tenth of the series featuring the linebacker-turned-lawyer of somewhat dubious ethics.

Yeah, the guy who played at Penn State but cut so many classes that "Joe Paterno parked me so far down the bench my butt was in Altoona."  The guy who went undrafted, but signed as a free-agent, lead-footed linebacker with the Miami Dolphins.  The guy whose most famous play was recovering a fumble against the Jets, getting smacked in the head and turned around, then racing to the wrong end zone for a safety...in a one-point loss.  The guy who sneaked through night law school, then passed the Bar Exam on his fourth try, something he still figures was a computer glitch.

Sneak preview:  In "State vs. Lassiter," Jake is charged with killing his girlfriend/banker, who supposedly is about to blow the whistle on him for skimming client funds. 

But no spoilers.  Whether Jake is vindicated or spends the rest of his days as a jailhouse lawyer, I'm not saying.  If you want, you can read the first four chapters here.  (They're very short).  The novel is available as both a Paperback Original and an EBook. 

The book has gotten some nice pre-pub buzz.  My favorite five-star Amazon review says: "Blend the wit of Carl Hiaasen with the dialogue of Elmore Leonard and throw in John Grisham's courtroom skills, and you have Jake Lassiter." 

I'll leave you with Jake's own self-description: 

"You won't find my mug on Facebook.  I don't have a life coach, an aroma therapist, or a yoga instructor, and I don't do Pilates.  I open the door for women and walk next to the street in case a horse and buggy jump the curb."

"So," he's asked, "you're not trendy?"

"I'm a carnivore among vegans, a brew and burger guy in a Chardonnay and pate world."

"In other words, a throwback?"

"If that's what you call someone with old friends, old habits, and old values."

And that, old friends, is that.

Paul Levine