Conrad Bux

Frank Hofmann is a German detective who's secured a two-year gig with the Federal Police in Australia. Brilliant, stubborn, and not particularly fond of authority, he has a habit of asking questions long after everyone else thinks a case is closed.

The story you're about to read is typical Frank—it follows his journey to Australia and shows his quirks and rumbling-gut feelings which he always makes good use of. Of course, although we meet Frank on a simple travel day, he can't make the trip without noticing things that don't add up.

Tiny details.

Little inconsistencies.

But more than enough to make it clear that wherever Frank goes, complications tend to follow.

An elusive killer strikes mercilessly from within the confines of the witness protection program . . .

The very program designed to protect people is killing them and the Australian Federal Police is oblivious. Meet Frank Hofmann: larger than life, brilliantly unconventional and going through a midlife crisis. Despite his recent suspension, Frank's insatiable hunger for justice catapults him into a deadly chase with the killer always one step ahead...

This killer has an agenda no one sees coming . . .

Former AFP partner, Amy Lamborne, becomes Frank's only ally. Because if he's right, this is bound to culminate in a showdown of epic proportions. The countdown is on to save his career, his sanity, and human lives.

Join a pulse-pounding race against the clock through the shadows of a witness protection program where danger lurks in unexpected places . . .

THE PERFECT ALIBI

While Frank Hofmann is searching for a missing person, the Australian Federal Police are hunting a serial killer who mutilates his prey. So when Frank finds the missing man dead, marked with the same brutal signature, the AFP assumes it's another casualty. But Frank insists there's more to it, and the DNA confirms it. The victim is the murderer.

Which raises a chilling question.

HOW DOES A DEAD MAN KILL?

The AFP calls it a copycat, but Frank knows better. He's the type of investigator who attacks a case the way he does a buffet—he doesn't stop until he's tried everything. But the more he digs in, the harder it becomes to digest what he discovers.

WHEN THE RULES ARE BENT, ONLY THE BROKEN KNOW HOW TO PLAY

Hauling years of grief—and the kind of gut earned from consistently seeking closure in kebabs and cake—Frank must crack an impossibly airtight alibi. With Amy by his side and the ghost of his murdered wife never far behind, outthinking a man who shouldn't exist will push Frank to his limits—and maybe even to his grave.

Because in this case, the past isn't just alive.

It's deadly.

Twisty, chilling, and darkly funny, Alive and Deadly is the second novel in the gripping Frank Hofmann series.