With the help of the fine folks at GOODREADS, we’re giving away the “pulpy, blackly humorous, compulsively readable” BORN FOR TROUBLE: THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF HAP AND LEONARD from the acclaimed Joe R. Lansdale.

You could call BORN FOR TROUBLE a collection of stories. But that’s like calling Paradise Lost by Milton a poem. BORN FOR TROUBLE is a road map through 20^th-century crime fiction, and your guides are two of the greatest, most intriguing characters ever created, Hap and Leonard. Rambunctious, complex, and endlessly fascinating, these two best friends offer a clear yet sometimes painful view of America in general, and East Texas in particular. Oh, by the way the cartographer of that map is one of the most original inventive and masterful storytellers to put pen to paper, Joe R. Lansdale. BORN FOR TROUBLE is bound to be a classic.

—S.A. Cosby author of Razorblade Tears and Blacktop Wasteland

In Edgar Award winner Joe R. Lansdale’s newest Hap and Leonard story collection, the boys are back, with more righteous ass-kickings, highly improbable adventures, and disastrous fishing trips. These never before collected tales showcase the popular not-so dynamic duo as a little bit older, but not a whole lot wiser—Hap and Leonard were truly born for trouble.

If you already know Joe Lansdale, you don’t need me to tell you to read BORN FOR TROUBLE. If you don’t, you’re in for a hell of a ride. Pulpy, blackly humorous, compulsively readable, and somehow both wildly surreal and down-to-earth. Lansdale is a national fucking treasure.

—Christa Faust, author of Money Shot

When you meet him, Hap Collins seems just like a good ol’ boy. But even in his misspent youth, his best pal was Leonard Pine: black, gay, and the ultimate outsider. Together, they have mostly found their way as partners in crime-solving—and at least as often, as hired muscle.

As Hap wrestles with his new identity as a father, and Leonard finds love in a long-term relationship, the boys continue their crime-solving shenanigans. They uncover the sordid secret of a missing bookmobile, compete in a warped version of the Most Dangerous Game, regroup after Hap’s visit to the psychologist goes terribly awry, and much more.

So sit yourself back and settle in—BORN FOR TROUBLE is East Texas mayhem as only the master mojo storyteller Lansdale could possibly tell.

[Lansdale’s] newest book, BORN FOR TROUBLE, is a collection of stories about the irresistible duo of Hap and Leonard. If you’ve met these dudes before, you won’t be surprised to hear that these latest stories are a treat; if you’re a Hap-and-Leonard virgin, well, I’ll overlook the fact that you’ve spent your recent years living in a cave and congratulate you on the adventure upon which you’re embarking.

—Lawrence Block, author of the Matthew Scudder mystery series

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Introduction: “The Boys” by Joe R. Lansdale
  
• Coco Butternut
• Hoodoo Harry
• Sad Onions
• The Briar Patch Boogie
• Cold Cotton