[Near To The Knuckle 12] • The Hard Cold Shoulder

“A surprisingly dark, thoughtful, action filled, hardboiled thriller with a heart as black as pitch. If you like dark fiction, this is it.” --Christopher Black.

“The Hard Cold Shoulder is clever, ruthless and hardboiled enough to give the meanest tough guy the shivers.” -- Frank Larnerd.

“Every step leaves ex DI Ben Pitkin wrestling with his own sanity, takes him deeper into seedy shadows thick with money and greed, deeper into the sickness of a country tearing itself apart under the pressures of austerity. Northern Noir at its most fierce, Sykes’ novella takes a hard, cold look at the desperate actions of desperate people caught in the effects of psychological trauma.” --E.S. Wynn

“This is hardboiled noir. This is updated noir. This is a book you have to read.” --Joseph Patchen, Lurid Lit

L.A. Sykes is a force to be reckoned with. His writing is crisp and to the point, His no-holds-barred stories would make Donald E Westlake and Jim Thompson proud. When I first read him it was a jolt of electricity. It made me want to stand up and scream, “Hell Yeah!” --Mark Slade, writer and podcaster: Dark Dreams and Blackout City