Ben Winters was my favorite speaker at the 2012 Gathering of Writers, but at the time I’d never read anything of his. I’d only heard of Android Karenina. It was Cathy Day that introduced me to The Last Policeman, and oh god I’m glad she did.

If you’re anything like me, all you need is a little bit of the summary to be convinced to read it:

What’s the point in solving murders if we’re all going to die soon, anyway?

Yep, there, done, I’m in. Let’s see the rest of the summary, anyway:

Detective Hank Palace has faced this question ever since asteroid 2011GV1 hovered into view. There’s no chance left. No hope. Just six precious months until impact.

It’s a murder mystery set with an imminent apocalypse at hand. What.

If you dig murder mysteries, you’ll like this. If you dig apocalyptic stories, you’ll like…