It's been quite some time since I've written to you, so I think you know I meant what I said when you signed up for my mailing list: I promised I wouldn't flood your inbox with annoying chatter and would write you only when I actually had something significant (in my mind, at least) to tell you. I think this e-mail qualifies!

I'm excited to tell you that my new book, Death Benefit, has arrived. It won't be released officially until September 6, but the Kindle version is available for pre-order now, at the introductory price of only 99¢. By the time September 6 rolls around, the paperback version should be available as well.

Lee Child calls it "A terrific legal thriller, right up there with the best in the genre—immediately appealing, always intriguing, and very satisfying in the end." Thanks Lee!

What's Death Benefit about?

Suppose it were legal to gamble on the time someone else is going to die? It is, if you invest in a life insurance product called a viatical.

When the sister of a law firm client dies in her sleep of carbon monoxide poisoning because of an apparently malfunctioning hot water heater, third year law student Elliot Lerner is asked to determine whether anyone could be held responsible in a wrongful death lawsuit. As he looks into the circumstances surrounding the death, he learns about viatical settlements—investment products designed to offer terminally ill patients with immediate cash in exchange for the right to their life insurance payouts when they die. The amount investors are willing to pay for a patient's death benefit depends on how much longer the patient is expected to live, because the investor must take over payment of the insurance premiums.

If it looks like the investor's gamble isn't going to pay off as planned because the patient is living too long, and the cost of premium payments exceeded expectations, there's only one way to eliminate that expense...

Pre-order Death Benefit now to take advantage of the low introductory price of 99¢.



In addition to the electronic and paper versions, I decided to try something new (for me, at least). Death Benefit will go audio. I've started the process for a professional production, which will be released through Amazon's Audible program. It's kind of cool, as I'm in the middle of auditioning narrators. How interesting, hearing different interpretations of the characters I thought I knew so well! The release of the audio version of Death Benefit will warrant another e-mail from me, so stay tuned.

Finally, to celebrate the release of Death Benefit, the price of Silent Counsel has been reduced to 99¢ as well, for a limited time. Sorry, electronic version only. The paper version remains available, at $9.99. (Blame Amazon's wacky pricing structure...)



If you want to keep up with me between e-mails, I hope you'll visit my new Author Page on Facebook or follow me on Twitter.

OK! I'm going online to check for the sudden spike in sales...

Best,
Ken