Kurt Kamm

Kurt Kamm

I live in Malibu, California and have used used my contacts with CalFire, Los Angeles County and Ventura County Fire Departments, as well as the ATF and DEA to write fact-based (“faction”) novels.

I have written a series of firefighter mystery novels, which have won several literary awards.

My newest novel, The Lizard’s Tale, is a story about an orphan from the streets of Mexico, caught in the struggle between the DEA and the Sinaloa Cartel. It is not like any other cartel book or novel. I wrote it after attending the DEA Citizen's Academy, and it provides a unique and exciting look inside the activities of the Mexican drug lords and the DEA men dedicated to stopping them.

Each of my firefighter novels features a firefighter with a special skill: Wildland / Arson Investigation / Fire Paramedic / HazMat/ Urban Search and Rescue. Each story is told from the viewpoint of the firefighter and involves both his fire specialty and a a personal problem he is battling.

I have built an avid fan base among first responders and other readers. A graduate of Brown University and Columbia Law School, I was previously a financial executive and semi-professional bicycle racer. I was also Chairman of the UCLA/Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center Foundation for several years.

I maintain an author website at http://www.kurtkamm.com.

You can contact me at Kurt@OneFootInTheBlack.com

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THE LIZARD'S TALE tells the the story of an orphan from the streets of Mexico and an endangered species - a Guatemalan beaded lizard - who try to survive after getting caught in a struggle between an ambitious DEA agent and the man who invests the billions of dollars for the Sinaloa Cartel

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TUNNEL VISIONS, a work of faction, blends fact and fiction, weaving together the historical facts of the Sylmar disaster, the current struggle for control over California's diminishing water supply, and a fictional plot to attack Los Angeles' water system.

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HAZARDOUS MATERIAL won the Hackney Literary Award for Best Novel of the year.

Bucky Dawson is a HazMat Specialist with Los Angeles County Fire Department. Bucky is strugging with painkiller addiction. His station is in Lancaster, CA--an area populated with meth labs and outlaw motorcycle gangs, as well as Edwards AFB, NASA, and top-secret aerospace facilities. The novel twists and turns, bringing together firefighters, a sinister aerospace engineer, the Vagos -- led by the Dwarf, their seven foot tall Sergeant at Arms, and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department in a surprise ending you will not anticipate but you will certainly enjoy.

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CODE BLOOD tells the story of a rookie fire paramedic who is obsessed with finding the severed foot of his first victim after she dies in his arms. His search takes him into the connected lives of a research student with the rarest blood in the world and the vampire fetishist who is stalking her. Within the corridors of high-stakes medical research laboratories, the shadow world of body parts dealers, and the underground Goth clubs of Los Angeles, the paramedic uncovers a tangled maze of needles, drugs and ritual, all of which lead to death.

CODE BLOOD was awarded FIRST PLACE in the 2012 International Book Awards in the Fiction: Cross Genre category. CODE BLOOD was also awarded FIRST PLACE in the 2012 National Indie Excellence Book Awards in the FACTION (fact based fiction) Category

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RED FLAG WARNING - A SERIAL ARSON MYSTERY has won three first place mystery fiction awards. Los Angeles County is burning. A serial arsonist is setting the parched hills on fire. Plunge into infernos and face the smoke, heat and danger with the men of the fire lines. While NiteHeat prowls in the darkness, setting fires and taunting investigators, the Los Angeles County Fire Department Arson Unit struggles to find the fire-setter and stop the devastation.

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My first novel, ONE FOOT IN THE BLACK - A Wildland Firefighter's Story tells the story of a young firefighter who joins a helitack crew, is called out to a massive wildland fire, and loses his captain in a burnover. After the tragedy, he succumbs to post traumatic stress and has a difficult time overcoming it. ONE FOOT IN THE BLACK has become a favorite with firefighters and other first responders.

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