This Is What We Do

“[This Is What We Do] is...Atlas Shrugged jammed in reverse and with the tires smoked. It's Ayn Rand for people with a brain. And a gun. It's a kick. Read it.” —Sean Beaudoin, author of You Killed Wesley Payne and The Infects

James Nethery is at the end of his rope. Unable to find meaning in his comfortable life, he has cut himself off from everyone and fled to Paris. His mission; to rid himself of a lifetime of baggage, erase the past, and start over. He wanders Paris aimlessly until he meets Lily, a Ukrainian model and hooker. They form a unique bond, and together take the first steps toward writing new stories of their lives. Soon, Lily’s past catches up with her and they are forced to go on the lam in a strange country. Together they must decide between justice and vengeance, and, when forced to take action, between what is too much—and not enough.

This Is What We Do is part neo–noir thriller, part love story, and part cautionary tale of the perils of trying to write a new life from nothing—and the stories that will be written for you by others if you find yourself in the public eye.

Tom Hansen was born and raised in Seattle, Washington. As a musician in the late 70’s and early 80’s, he was a pioneer in the punk rock scene in Seattle. Eventually, music gave way to heroin and he turned to dealing to support his habit. He got clean in 1999, returned to school and received an MFA from the University of British Columbia in 2008. He published his first book, the memoir American Junkie, in 2010.