Hammer and Velda go on vacation to a small beach town on Long Island after wrapping up the Williams case (I, the Jury). Walking romantically along the broadwalk, they witness a brutal beating at the hands of some vicious local cops—Hammer wades in to defend the victim.
When a woman turns up naked—and dead—astride the statue of a horse in the small-town city park, how she wound up this unlikely Lady Godiva is just one of the mysteries Hammer feels compelled to solve…
Mickey Spillane's lost 1940s Mike Hammer novel, written between I, the Jury and My Gun Is Quick and never before published! Completed by Spillane's friend and literary executor Max Allan Collins, Lady, Go Die! is finally making its way into print almost 70 years after its inception!
Publishers Weekly: "clever, fast-moving" "Collins displays his mastery of Spillane’s distinctive two-fisted prose."
Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine: “Collins has the ear – and the chops – to bring Spillane’s hero to life”
Pulp Fiction Reviews: "Lady, Go Die! is another terrific Mike Hammer caper that moves non-stop like a flying cheetah across the reader’s field of imagination and comes to a pouncing kill in a truly classic Spillane finale."
Bill Crider's Pop Culture Magazine: "Lady, Go Die! proves once again how wise Spillane was to insure that Collins was the one to take care of his uncompleted works....[Lady, Go Die! is] fast and tough, just like Spillane would've done it alone."
Crimespree Magazine: "Fans of classic pulp have been getting a special gift for the last few years. After Mickey Spillane’s passing in 2006, his close friend and fellow literary icon Max Allan Collins has been completing the remaining never before seen Mike Hammer novels from Spillane’s notes. The results have been wonderful." "a fun read that rings true to the way the character was originally written by Spillane...I hope Mike and Velda have many more adventures before Collins is through."
The Daily Rotation: "Mike Hammer is the ultimate bad ass"
Bookgasm: "...you won’t be able to tell where Spillane left off and Collins took over...But more importantly: Lady, Go Die! never falters, delivering one of those trademark Hammer endings."
Indiewire: "Max Allan Collins does Mickey Spillane & Mike Hammer Proud...the prose is crisp and deliciously blunt, the story is engaging and it has the requisite sex and violence you'd want from a piece of pulp fiction."
The Rap Sheet: "[Lady, Go Die!] is vintage Spillane, a top-notch entry in the long-running Hammer series."
Not the Baseball Pitcher: "Collins has managed to marry his own style with Spillane’s and make a seamless novel that kept me turning the pages. I started it in the morning and finished in the evening."
Sound on Sight: "Collins has seamlessly merged with Spillane, flawlessly acquiring the late author’s voice....Lady has the express train energy typical of Spillane, the book rocketing off to a fast start from its first sentence."
Comic Book Resources: "tremendous fun with every bit of the adrenaline rush that I expect from a Hammer book."
Slacker Heroes: "Pulp fiction will never be respected in certain circles, but...this is particularly good pulp fiction. Both Spillane and Collins are recipients of the Private Eye Writers of America life achievement award with good reason."
Mike Dennis Noir: "Collins once again shows how thoroughly he understands not only the genre, but Spillane himself."
Comic Attack: "Spillane and Collins are a creative match made in heaven, and Spillane made a very wise decision of entrusting Collins with his unpublished manuscripts."
Greenwich Library: "Lady, Go Die! pulsates with an energenic pace that never lets up."
Fiction Addict: "Lady, Go Die! is definitely worth the read."
Blogcritics: "Everything a thriller reader could want"
George Kelley: "If you’re a fan of Mickey Spillane and Mike Hammer, this is a must-buy."
NoirWHALE: "A great gritty read."
Books and Writers: "With a great tale with barely a spare word and a great twist along the way, this is like Raymond Chandler having sunk a case of Red Bull – fast, action filled, witty and thoroughly enjoyable hardboiled crime fiction at its best."
8 Days a Geek: "a classic piece of Mike Hammer...[Lady, Go Die!] is a great Mike Hammer story for those of us who like a good ole’ fashioned crime novel"
Pop Cults: "Writing your own material is tough, but to take another author’s beloved character and write a book that most diehard Spillane fans would swear was written by the man himself is extraordinary."
Eastern Standard Crime: "When I think of a legit tough guy P.I., Mike Hammer always tops the list." "Collins has once again done a stellar job of keeping the Hammer voice intact."
Random Writings: "Collins has done a masterful job of maintaining the traditions of Spillane and Mike Hammer."
Vivid Scribe: "[Lady, Go Die! is] everything a good detective story should be. Steeped in traditions of the noir detective thriller, this novel is a fun read and a page turner until the end."
Interview: Max Allan Collins from Slacker Heroes. May 3, 2012.
Road to Perdition's Max Allan Collins Lists His Top 10 Crime Comics from MTV Geek. May 3, 2012.
Another Hard Boiled Friday from Comics Should Be Good. May 4, 2012.
A Beginner's Guide to Crime Fiction from Flavorwire. May 5, 2012.
Lady, Go Die!: A Behind The Scenes Look At Completing Mickey Spillane's Lost 'Mike Hammer' Novels from Lit Reactor. May 7, 2012.
Max Allan Collins on working with Mickey Spillane: essay and exclusive excerpt from long-lost Mike Hammer novel from Boing Boing. May 8, 2012.
The Evolution of Detectives in Fiction from Huffington Post. M.A.C. lists eleven game-changing detectives. May 8, 2012.
Road to Perdition Author Max Allan Collins Speaks About Mike Hammer on Screen from Destroy the Brain. May 8, 2012.
Where's the Love for—and in—Hardboiled? from Criminal Element. M.A.C. discusses "noir" as the replacement word for "hardboiled." May 9, 2012.
No Holiday for Hammer, interview with The Rap Sheet's J. Kingston Pierce. May 10, 2012.
The Top Ten Films Noir According to ‘Road to Perdition’ Writer Max Allan Collins from Film School Rejects. May 14, 2012.
The Finisher: My Top Five Max Allan Collins Projects from Ransom Notes: The Barnes and Noble Mystery Blog. May 15, 2012.
Max Allan Collins (‘Road to Perdition’) on carrying on Mickey Spillane’s legacy from Sound on Sight. May 17, 2012.
Judge, Jury, and Executioner: Mickey Spillane, Mike Hammer, and the Private Eye on Screen and on the Page from Sound on Sight. May 18, 2012.
Mike Hammer returns in 'Lady, Go Die!' from the Oklahoman. May 18, 2012.
Treasure Hunting With Legends: An Interview With Writer Max Allan Collins from Comic Book Dot Com. May 22, 2012.
ROAD TO PERDITION Writer Max Allan Collins Talks LADY, GO DIE! And More from Comic Book Movie. May 23, 2012.
Interview, Part One from PDX Comic Geek. May 28, 2012.
Interview, Part Two from PDX Comic Geek. May 29, 2012.
Max Allan Collins, Author Of 'Road To Perdition,' Discusses New Mike Hammer Novel from Forbes. May 30, 2012.
5 Books and 5 Albums that changed my Life: Max Allan Collins from Crimespree. May 30, 2012.
Interview with Max Allan Collins from Comic Attack. June 3, 2012.
Interview with Max Allan Collins from Book Geek. June 5, 2012.
First Lord of Mystery – An Interview with Max Allan Collins from Vivid Scribe. June 22, 2012.
Interview: Max Allan Collins from Books and Writers. June 27, 2012.