A Firing Offense
George P. Pelecanos · first published 1992 · ISBN 9780316079631
Nick Stefanos, a young marketing consultant in Washington, D.C., investigates the disappearance of a coworker and finds himself inside a criminal world he didn't know existed beneath the city's neighborhoods. The mystery pulls him through race, class, and the way ordinary people become entangled in violence.
On our lists
The Best Crime Novels of the 1990s
Pelecanos introduced readers to a Washington, D.C., that existed outside the power corridors and glossy memorials. His street-level perspective, crackling dialogue, and refusal to sentimentalize his characters established him as a major voice. The novel works because Pelecanos knows the city in ways that matter.