Lean into the Light (Tulsa Underworld)

All's Fair in Love and Family.

Quinton "Quinn" Cole is out of prison and free, but the same bonds that sent him there in the first place haven't changed. Nor has his brother Reggie, who still needs his protection.

Meanwhile, the Russo family has decided to leave their life of crime. The family is well-regarded by the community and feared in the streets. When a wayward child, Donny, seeks to undo everything the family has built with his wild criminal antics, who will overcome and survive?

Years ago, Detective Gracie Jo Amzy investigated Elizabeth "Liz" Starr's rape. Now, many years later, Liz, a witness to a murder, is once again in the position of key witness. It is up to Det. Amzy and her eccentric partner to put the pieces together and convince Liz to come forward with what she knows before it is too late for both her and her loved ones.

Lean into the Light is a family drama that explores the traumas of the past against the realities of the present. But history is fickle and often shrouded in mystery, so too is love. All must come to terms with the present; so too must they accept the past.

Mark Atley writes crime stories. The characters he met on the streets meet those he drew in his head. They interact with exhilarating results. The ride is wild and entertaining, and the dialog bounces like an old pickup in a pothole-ridden back alley. Mark's first novel The Olympian was positively received. A Bright Young Man will be published by Close to the Bone in 2022. His short fiction appeared in Punk Noir Magazine, Bristol Noir, and others. Mark works as a detective for a suburb of Tulsa, Oklahoma. He graduated from Oklahoma State University with two degrees in journalism. Follow Mark on Twitter @markatley.