CRIME THRILLERS YOU'VE BEEN SEARCHING FOR.
JUSTICE BASED ON MORAL CLARITY
courage TO FIGHT CORRUPTION & INDIFFERENCE
BELIEF THAT CHARACTER AND LOYALTY MATTER
Clarkson writes hard-edged American stories about men and women who have the courage to confront cruelty and corruption. Who in a violent, indifferent world are compelled to say – not here, not now. Why? Compassion.
OR
The New York Times — “Packs a savage punch.” Kirkus Reviews — “Dark, sexy, tough, and fast.”
London Daily Mail — “A writer at the top of his game.” Booklist — “A real treat for fans of gritty crime fiction.”
Three ways into Clarkson's world.
WANT MORE THAN JUST A LONE HERO?
Start with the JAMES BECK SERIES.
James Beck and his band of ex-cons are forced to live in a society that would rather see them dead or in prison. They have no status, no protection, nothing but each other and code that says loyalty comes first. Experience what it's like to find a brotherhood of exceptionally capable men who will absolutely go to war for you no matter how powerful or corrupt the enemy. Start with the first book in the series: AMONG THIEVES.
WANT ONE MAN, ALONE, DRAWING HIS OWN LINE?
Start with the Jack Devlin ONE Series.
When the law protects the guilty, that's when you send in Jack Devlin. One man, one law - his. Devlin is a man with moral clarity. The powerful and protected do not have the right to prey on the weak. And more to the point, Devlin has the competency and skills to do whatever it takes to enforce that ethic. The series ranges far and wide from New York's underworld, to the remote rain forest of Hawaii, to London neighborhoods where Easter Bloc gangs battle Jamaican Yardies. Start with the highly acclaimed: AND JUSTICE FOR ONE.
WANT CORRUPTION EXPOSED AND THE WEAK DEFENDED?
Read the standalone novels — NEW LOTS and REED'S PROMISE.
Both novels follow unlikely heroes. In NEW LOTS, it's a burnt-out NYPD detective who battles the dysfunction and hopelessness that gives rise to ruthless crimes in a housing project. In REED'S PROMISE, it's a disabled ex-FBI forensic accountant who takes on a corrupt empire built on exploitation, cruelty, and silence. Both men find the strength and determination ignited by fighting not for themselves, but for others.
"John Clarkson is among the finest crime writers in the U.S.A"
— DK, Goodreads Reviewer
The James Beck Series
In book one, AMONG THIEVES, James Beck is unjustly imprisoned for killing an NYPD cop. A vindictive judge sends him sent to maximum security prisons where every guard takes it upon himself to make the cop killer pay. Beck survives with the help of a few remarkable fellow prisoners. Once exonerated, he joins with those ex-cons to protect themselves and their loved ones.
The series explore loyalty, the will to resist, and survival in a criminal justice system that protects the rich and powerful, and crushes the disenfranchised.
In book one, AMONG THIEVES, James Beck is unjustly imprisoned for killing an NYPD cop. A vindictive judge sends him sent to maximum security prisons where every guard takes it upon himself to make the cop killer pay. Beck survives with the help of a few remarkable fellow prisoners. Once exonerated, he joins with those ex-cons to protect themselves and their loved ones.
The Series explore loyalty, the will to resist, and survival in a criminal justice system that protects the rich and powerful and crushes the disenfranchised.
Standalone Thrillers
NEW LOTS:
A drug war is raging in a failed Brooklyn housing project. The NYPD Chief of Detectives gives disgraced cop Loyd Shaw one chance to save his job, pension, and dignity — stop the killing in Brownsville. Shaw has no idea how he’s going to survive this suicide mission until a whirlwind of violence, poverty, addiction, and greed catapult him into a single, life-changing climax he never imagined.
REED'S PROMISE:
Former FBI forensic accountant Bill Reed is physically and emotionally broken, with almost no chance of recovery — until he learns his disabled cousin is being abused inside an institution isolated in the remote New York Adirondack region. To save him, Reed must confront a corrupt empire protected by power, money, and privilege. But first, Bill Reed will have to confront the man he has become.
Standalone Thrillers
A drug war is raging in a failed Brooklyn housing project. The Chief of Detectives gives disgraced cop Loyd Shaw one chance to save his job, pension, and dignity — stop the killing. Shaw has no idea how he’s going to survive this suicide mission until a whirlwind of violence, poverty, addiction, and greed catapult him into a single, life-changing climax he never imagined.
Former FBI forensic accountant Bill Reed is physically and emotionally broken, with almost no chance of recovery — until he learns his disabled cousin is being abused inside an institution isolated in the remote New York Adirondack region. To save him, Reed must confront a corrupt empire protected by power, money, and privilege. But most of all, Bill Reed will have to confront the man he has become.
The Jack Devlin "ONE" Series
A hard‑hitting, high‑velocity set of thrillers about a private security specialist who takes on the violent, the corrupt, and the untouchable.
Jack Devlin is the man you call when power, money, and compromised police make justice impossible for anyone but them.
Here's what critics say about Clarkson's novels.
"Packs a savage punch."
The New York Times on And Justice for One.
"Dark, sexy, tough, and fast."
Kirkus Reviews (starred) for And Justice for One.
"And outstanding thriller...Fans of Lee Child's Jack Reacher will find a lot to like."
Publishers Weekly (starred review) for Among
Thieves.
"Sensational...the action is relentless, twist upon twist of an exceptional plot unfold...This is an outstanding thriller from a writer at the top of his game."
London Daily Mail on Among Thieves.
"A top-notch, adrenaline-charged, action-packed thriller. A gritty, explosive tale, carefully orchestrated."
Ray Walsh, Lansing State Journal on New Lots
"Reed's Promise makes other thrillers seem tame by comparison...a fabulous feat of writing...one of the best of its kind...resonates with crushing scenes of dread. This is a brilliant book.
Yvette Candraw. BLOGSPOT.COM
"Death Comes Due is a swift moving, cinematic thriller.
Kirkus Reviews
"As in Among Thieves, the bad guys continue to be the good guys and vice versa...The action sizzles in Bronx Requiem. Highly recommended."
Hilary Williamson, BOOKLOONS
"Clarkson affirms with Bronx Requiem that he is the real deal. His gritty cinematic vision of the real world rings true in sentence after sentence, page after page, in a story that is very much of the street and the people who inhabit it..."
Joe Hartlaub, Bookreporter
"A taut, fast-paced thruller than never slows down."
Kirkus Reviews on Tribes
Readers come for the action, but stay for the characters. Clarkson’s heroes aren’t just tough; they’re intelligent, loyal, and deeply human. His stories explore what happens when the system fails and people are forced to take extraordinary risks.
Experience for yourself why readers can’t stop turning the pages.
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