ONLINE: John Galligan

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Ya-Ling Tsai

Author John Galligan is a native Madisonian.

Summer is a great time to pick up a mystery. Madison's John Galligan knows how to write good ones; plus, he sets them in southern Wisconsin — witness his series of fly-fishing-related mysteries set in the Driftless. In his latest, Dead Man Dancing, the setting is the fictional "Bad Axe County," where they're prepping to celebrate Syttende Mai — or Norwegian Independence Day. Sound familiar? Sheriff Heidi Kick is looking into a cage fighting ring with ties to white nationalists, when her husband goes missing. Galligan will discuss the book with Doug Moe in this virtual Mystery to Me event, on Crowdcast.

RSVP: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/deadman

press release:  In this sequel to the “gritty, brash, and totally gripping” (The Real Book Spy) thriller Bad Axe County, Sheriff Heidi Kick is investigating an illicit cage fighting ring with ties to white nationalism when her husband suddenly goes missing.

It’s a time for celebration in Bad Axe County as the town gathers for the annual Syttende Mai—or Norwegian Independence Day—festival. During this rollicking family-oriented event filled with dancing and food, Sheriff Heidi Kick discovers a dark and shocking event—a migrant worker has been savagely beaten but refuses to explain what happened. Then, a sudden murder of a band member shatters the festival. Something is deeply wrong in Bad Axe County.

As she looks for answers, Heidi plunges into a secret underworld where high-stakes cage fights double as combat training for the White Nationalist movement. Then all hell breaks loose for Heidi when her husband disappears and a secret he’s been keeping from Heidi is revealed.

A timely portrait of the deep divisions and simmering tensions brewing in our country today, Dead Man Dancing takes you into the dark heart of a movement defined by violence and hate. Featuring John Galligan’s signature “striking prose, engaging characters” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review), and unforgettable twists and turns, Dead Man Dancing is a breathless thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

John Galligan is the author of the soon to be released Dead Man Dancing,  Bad Axe County (Atria, July 2019) and five other novels: Red Sky, Red Dragonfly; The Nail Knot; The Blood Knot; The Clinch Knot; and The Wind Knot.

In addition to being a novelist, he has worked as a newspaper journalist, feature-film screenwriter, house painter, au pair, ESL teacher, cab driver, and freezer boy in a salmon cannery. He teaches writing at Madison College, where his experience is enriched by students from every corner of the local and world communities. He has won awards as a feature journalist, sports journalist, and short story writer before settling on a career as a novelist.

A native of Madison, Wisconsin, John is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, with degrees in Environmental Policy (BS) and English Literature (MA).