Welcome to JAKonrath.com

You've just surfed onto the official page of JA Konrath, author of the Lt. Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels thrillers. Here you'll discover more than you've ever wanted to know about Joe (yes, he's a man), his books, his characters, and his pseudonym Jack Kilborn. So pour yourself a drink and stay a while.

Cherry Bomb

Jack Daniels #6

At the end of Fuzzy Navel–a thriller so gripping countless fans reported reading it in one sitting–JA Konrath surprised readers with a doozy of a cliffhanger: One of Lt. Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels's loved ones is dead. But who? The Internet has been abuzz with fans clamoring to know more.

The wait is almost over.

Cherry Bomb, the sixth Jack Daniels thriller, opens with a funeral. While Jack stands graveside, tears in her eyes, her cell phone rings, It's the killer, taunting Jack, drawing her even further into a twisted game of cat and mouse.

Reader beware: Cherry Bomb might be the last Jack Daniels novel, and not everyone gets out of this one alive...

"Brisk and breezy...The slam-bang ending is sure to satisfy series fans."
— Publishers Weekly

Read an excerpt of Cherry Bomb in the Jack Daniels/Alex Chapa Novella Floaters, available for free.

Available in hardcover, e-book, CD, and mp3. Coming in paperback June 2010.

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Fuzzy Navel

Jack Daniels #5

A twisted murderer bent on revenge...

Three vigilantes who want to silence a cop...

No way to escape, nowhere to run...

The next eight hours will be the worst of Jack's life. And that's saying something.

"Fuzzy Navel is Konrath at his best – a hilariously heartstopping thriller."
— Linda Fairstein

"This gripping novel is an adrenalin rush."
— Library Journal

"This book moves so fast it was like having the words fired into my head by a machine gun."
— Crimespree

"Fans won't want to miss this book because of some surprising developments in Daniels's personal life and an ending that promises more shocks in the next installment."
— Publishers Weekly

"This series should come with a Surgeon General warning."
— CK2S

"The action is nonstop in this suspenseful and very scary story. Konrath is a master at personifying evil and keeping readers on the edge of their seats. Luckily, there is also a level of humor that breaks the tension before the next shocker hits, including a heart-stopping cliffhanger. Four and 1/2 stars."
— Romantic Times

"Please buy this book so my family can eat."
— JA Konrath

Download the First Seven Chapters.

Available in hardcover, paperback, e-book, CD, and mp3.

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Dirty Martini

Jack Daniels #4

Homicide Lieutenant Jack Daniels is in some serious trouble. Her boyfriend wants to get married. Her partner wants to transfer. Her dead father may not be dead after all. And a brilliant sociopath known as The Chemist is poisoning Chicago's food supply, killing hundreds of people.

"Konrath's fourth drink-inspired mystery is a particularly potent mix of equal parts mirth and mayhem with a dash of sex and a twist (or two) of plot. His latest should be taken straight, no chaser needed."
— Publishers Weekly

"Konrath ratchets up the suspense until readers don't dare stop flipping the pages. A solid success for those who like to mix comedy and grit."
— Booklist

"Mix witty repartee with edge-of-your-chair suspense, over-the-top killing devices, and action that never takes a breather, and you have Konrath's latest white-knuckle thriller. Not to be missed."
— Library Journal

"Spend some time with Jack and the people in her life; I can promise you won’t regret it.”
— Kay Hooper, author of Sleeping With Fear

"Dirty Martini changed my life. I don't buy food or drinks anymore, and I haven't left my house in months. A scary, fantastic book."
— Greg Swanson, Waldenbooks, Peru, IL

"Dirty Martini is straight-up goodness. One part Evanovich, one part Patterson, a splash of King: JA Konrath goes down smooth."
— Wendy Brault, Barnes & Noble, CT.

Download the First Seven Chapters.

Available in hardcover, paperback, e-book, CD, and mp3.

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Whiskey Sour

Jack Daniels #1

Lt. Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels is having a VERY bad week...

Jack's live-in boyfriend has left her for his personal trainer, chronic insomnia has maxed out her credit cards with late-night home shopping purchases, and a frightening killer who calls himself "The Gingerbread Man" is dumping mutilated bodies in her district.

Between avoiding the FBI and their moronic profiling computer, joining a dating service, mixing it up with street thugs, and parrying the advances of an uncouth PI, Jack and her binge-eating partner Herb must catch the maniac before he kills again...and Jack is next on his murder list.

"Whiskey Sour is the best debut of the year so far."
— Chicago Sun Times

"One potent cocktail."
— Andrew Vachss, author of Down Here

"Easily one of the best debut suspense novels in recent years--bring on the sequel!"
— BookPage

"Damn it, I want Jack!"
— Barry Eisler, author of Requiem For An Assassin

Engaging... full of humor... fans of Janet Evanovich will like this."
— Library Journal

A literary cocktail that'll knock you off your chair."
— Ridley Pearson, author of Cut and Run

Download the Entire Book For Free.

Available in hardcover, paperback, e-book, CD, and mp3.

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Bloody Mary

Jack Daniels #2

Start with a tough but vulnerable Chicago cop. Stir in a psychopath with an unique mental condition that programs him to kill. Add a hyperactive cat, an ailing mother, a jealous boyfriend, a high-maintenance ex-husband, and a partner in the throes of a mid-life crisis. Mix with equal parts humor and suspense, and enjoy Bloody Mary–the second novel in the funny, frightening world of Lieutenant Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels.

When Jack receives a report of an excess of body parts appearing at the Cook County Morgue, she hopes it’s only a miscount. It’s not. Even worse, these extra limbs seem to be accessorized with Jack’s handcuffs.

Someone has plans for Jack. Very bad plans. Plans that involve everything and everyone that she cares about.

Jack must put her train wreck of a personal life on hold to catch an elusive, brilliant maniac–a maniac for whom getting caught is only the beginning…

"Excellent smart-mouth thrills... my advice: Take a long sip."
— Lee Child, author of One Shot

"Tough, gritty and surprisingly touching, Bloody Mary is a gripping read."
— M.J. Rose, author of The Halo Effect.

"Characters you care about and a breath-stealing plot. Reading BLOODY MARY is a ride on a rocket-propelled roller coaster. Strap in and hold on tight."
— Jack Kerley, author of The Death Collectors

"I haven't actually read this book."
— Dave Barry, author of Tricky Business

Download the First Seven Chapters + Author notes.

Available in hardcover, paperback, e-book, CD, and mp3.

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Rusty Nail

Jack Daniels #3

Jack's back, and once again she's up to her Armani in murder. Someone is sending Jack snuff videos. The victims are people she knows, and they share a common trait–each was involved in one of Jack's previous cases. With her stalwart partner, Herb, hospitalized and unable to help, Jack follows a trail of death throughout the Midwest, on a collision course with the smartest and deadliest adversary she has ever known.

"Engaging characters, true guffaws, and tightly knit subplots... offering violent thrills peppered with hilarious one-liners."
— Publishers Weekly

"JA Konrath hits the nail squarely on the head! Rusty Nail, a riveting thriller, is a heady mixture of chills and chuckles. You'll drain this libation in a single sitting!"
— Julia Spencer-Fleming, author of All Mortal Flesh

"J.A. Konrath serves up chills and thrills and a lot of laughs. Rusty Nail is twisted and violent, creepy and clever, fast, frightening, and funny. This is not your Granny's thriller."
— Anne Frasier, author of Pale Immortal

"Tougher than Kay Scarpetta, smarter than Stephanie Plum, Jacqueline Daniels rocks."
— Alex Kava, author of A Necessary Evil

"Rusty Nail has it all--thrills, chills, and laugh-out-loud hilarity. JA Konrath expertly pours on both shivers and fun."
— Tess Gerritsen, author of The Mephisto Club

"Rusty Nail goes down with the slick ease and murderous impact of the intoxicating cocktail."
— Gayle Lynds, author of The Last Spymaster

Download the First Seven Chapters.

Available in hardcover, paperback, e-book, CD, and mp3.

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Audio Books

Don't like to read? Prefer being read to?

Using this player you can listen to the first seven chapters of every Jack Daniels novel. Each excerpt lasts approximately an hour.

Whiskey Sour, Bloody Mary, Rusty Nail, Dirty Martini, Fuzzy Navel, and Cherry Bomb (July 2009) all contain exclusive, audio-only content, and are available online at Brilliance Audio.com and wherever audiobooks are sold.

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Updates

This page was last updated 4/19/10 with a major addition to the For Writers page..

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Disclaimer - The Lt. Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels mystery series is not sponsored by, endorsed by, or related to
Jack Daniel's Properties, Inc., makers of Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey. It's damn fine whiskey, though.

If you're wondering what happened to my old website, its never-to-be-updated remains are HERE.

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