The Long Fall — Walter Mosley

Leonid McGill is an ex-boxer, a hard drinker, and not one to turn down a shady job for a quick buck. He's an old-school PI working a New York City that's gotten fancy all around him. Meanwhile, he's just trying to get by -- at least for his wife and kids. Maybe it's time for McGill to turn over a new leaf. Or at least go from crooked to slightly bent.

But cleaned up or not, New York is still a city full of dirty secrets. And as McGill calls in old markers and greases NYPD palms to unearth some seemingly harmless information for a high-paying client, his commitment to the straight and narrow is going to be tested to the limit.