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Desert Dirt

A Crimson States Story

Riverside County, California is a wasteland of sunbaked secrets and blood-soaked vendettas, where the line between justice and vengeance is as thin as a chalk outline. In the desert, the past never stays buried.

 

For Detective Sam Quade, the badge is both a shield and a license to steal—it lets him clean up Riverside County’s filth and take what he wants, but some stains don’t wash out. After years spent chasing killers, he’s now hunting something far worse: the truth. But the truth doesn’t come without a body count.

 

Kyle walks out of jail, but in the desert, freedom is just a mirage. The woman he loved is gone, and the answers he needs are buried under layers of lies, dirt, and death. As he follows the trail of her disappearance, he’s pulled into a violent world of outlaw bikers, gangs, and crime families—where every step forward leads deeper into the dark.

 

Few men survive the game like Nicky Hill: sharp-dressed, silver-tongued, and ruthless. He built his empire by making the right moves at the right time. But now, death has come calling for him and his people. If Nicky wants to stay on top, he’ll have to remind the world why the name Hill still commands fear.

 

Three men. Three paths soaked in blood. One truth that ties them all together. And at the center of it all—a girl named Suzie Q, whose name is written in blood across the desert.

 

Brutal, unforgiving, and dripping in noir atmosphere, Desert Dirt is a gritty crime thriller about power, revenge, and the bodies left behind when the dust settles.

Written by Simon Pearce
Edited by Jordan Mulligan
Cover by Alejandro Colucci

"Plunging readers through blood-soaked streets and a storm of bullets, Desert Dirt: A Crimson States Story by Simon Pearce is a relentlessly packed neo-noir drama. When Kyle is released after months in prison for a horrific crime he didn't commit, he looks to get answers and payback, no matter who lands in his crossfire. However, a crooked cop is looking to settle his own twisted score, which complicates this grieving felon's crusade for vengeance, blurring the lines between loyalty and old love. Setting a mood that is both eerie and gritty, Pearce excels at establishing each scene, where the atmosphere feels like a character in itself, from ghost towns and strip clubs to plot-driving action of diamond heists and military cover-ups. Both slow-burning and quickly paced, this is a rivetingly grim thriller that never lets up the tension."

 

The Independent Review of Books

5 ⭐️ REVIEWS

Amazon

Dark, cinematic, and grounded in humanity, this compelling story is perfect for readers who enjoy emotionally and morally complex crime fiction.

Goodreads

Dark, Violent, and Unforgiving — Crime Fiction Done Right...

Amazon

What stayed with me most was the mood. The desert feels intense and attentive, mirroring the way these characters wrestle with guilt, revenge, and blurred lines between right and wrong.

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