A gunman comes out of retirement to guard his former partner's family Jimmy Quinn was a gunman, bootlegger, and bagman, running with mobsters the likes of Lucky Luciano, Meyer Lansky, and Vincent "Mad Dog" Coll, until a bullet in the leg and the murder of Arnold Rothstein ended his career. Quinn bought a speakeasy in downtown Manhattan and settled into a quiet retirement-until the day he learns that famous aviator Charles Lindbergh's baby has been kidnapped, and his old friend and partner Walter Spencer wants a word. Spence has left his criminal past behind, marrying into the Pennyweight family-of Pennyweight Petroleum-and settling into a legitimate lifestyle in rural New Jersey. Now Spence has business out of state, and with the Lindbergh kidnapping weighing on his mind, he wants Quinn to stay in his home and protect his family. A few days guarding Spence's beautiful wife should be easy work, but Quinn's old business is about to catch up with him, and he quickly finds that the Garden State can be even more dangerous than the streets of New York City. Michael Mayo (b. 1948) has written about film for the Washington Post and the Roanoke Times. He was the host of the nationally syndicated radio programs Movie Show on Radio and Max and Mike on the Movies.

His books include VideoHound's Video Premieres, Horror Show, and War Movies. He edited three volumes of The DVD Guide. Mayo's most recent book is American Murder: Criminals, Crime, and the Media, and he blogs about film occasionally at mikeonmovies.com. He's a member of the Mystery Writers of America, the Broadcast Film Critics Association, and the Professional Football Researchers Association. Jimmy the Stick is his first novel. He lives in New Jersey.