RAZORBLADE TEARS is a highly entertaining and heart-pounding mystery/thriller that most likely will be one of the hit novels of summer 2021.

S. A. Cosby is the award-winning author of BLACKTOP WASTELAND, which won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and was a New York Times Notable Book. His style differs from some of his fellow authors as his protagonists are neither sophisticated nor strategic. They are bulls in a china shop of peril who know only the response of violence and guns to the dangers they face. This makes for fast-paced stories, as well as plots and characters that easily can be transferred to action flicks. RAZORBLADE TEARS was the subject of a bidding war for film rights, eventually won by Paramount Players. As I read the book, I was creating the cast in my mind and wondering if it will be a movie or a series.

"S. A. Cosby seems well on his way to becoming the kind of mystery author whose next books are eagerly anticipated....We always like to root for good guys finding redemption, and RAZORBLADE TEARS certainly fits that description."

At its heart, RAZORBLADE TEARS is a “buddy” story. Think Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy in 48 Hours. However, there are some contemporary plot twists that make it something more than two men from different walks of life learning about each other. Ike Randolph (who is Black) and Buddy Lee Jenkins (who is white) barely know each other, but a tragedy brings them together. Their sons have been viciously murdered, and they are determined to find out who is responsible. Isiah and Derek were recently married and the fathers of a young daughter, Arianna. Ike and Buddy Lee struggle with their inability to accept the lifestyle of their sons, and even in death there is an uneasy tension when discussing them.

They soon discover other common elements in their backgrounds. Both are former felons who have spent time in prison. Buddy Lee remains a man walking lightly on the edges of the criminal culture. He has little to show for himself other than an ex-wife and countless ex-girlfriends. Ike is the opposite. After serving his sentence, he vowed to have nothing to do with crime and turned his life into a feel-good story of overcoming his past and becoming a successful member of his community. In many ways he is safely part of the upper middle-class culture. He has no desire or reason to return to his criminal past, but Isiah’s death could change everything.

A great portion of the book involves Ike and Buddy Lee driving together on the backroads of rural Virginia sharing their thoughts on their sons. These discussions allow Cosby to speak to racial issues from the perspectives of both races, and he eagerly peppers his dialogue with the dialect of the South. Smoothy pairing the homespun language with vibrant and energetic action, the pages almost turn themselves. Cosby is unafraid to tackle subjects that other authors tend to avoid. Ike is a reformed criminal who only returns to that life when the legal system fails him. In this regard, he is like Bug Montage from BLACKTOP WASTELAND. The road to revenge is littered with numerous dead bodies, violent shootouts and a few unbelievable outcomes, which help make the new novel so enjoyable.

S. A. Cosby seems well on his way to becoming the kind of mystery author whose next books are eagerly anticipated. His characters are decent people battling evil and injustice. We always like to root for good guys finding redemption, and RAZORBLADE TEARS certainly fits that description.