Elmore Leonard: LaBrava (UK 2026)

From the Publisher:
Joe LaBrava is a photographer documenting the street life of Miami. But before he was a photographer, he was a Secret Service agent. And before that he was a twelve-year-old boy, crazy in love with movie star Jean Shaw. When his pal Maurice Zola asks for his help in sorting out a problem for a friend, and that friend turns out to be the now-retired Jean Shaw, LaBrava's all in - even when the problem in question is blackmail.

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava. Penguin Modern Classics, ISBN: 9780241755372 (March, 2026), 288 p., £10.99.

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava (USA 2013)

From the Publisher:
"RIVETING AND EXHILARATING... TERSE AND TOUGH... .LEONARD IS A MASTER." -- NEWSDAY (NEW YORK)
Joe LaBrava is an ex-Secret Service agent who gets mixed up in a South Miami Beach scam involving a redneck former cop, a Cuban hit man who moonlights as a go-go dancer, and a onetime movie queen whose world is part make-believe, part deadly dangerous.

This is vintage Leonard: fast-moving, pitch-perfect, and utterly, authentically irresistible.

"Terrific... . Leonard's best novel." -- Philadelphia Inquirer
"Dialogue so authentic it dances off the page." -- New York Times
"A superb craftsman. His writing is pure pleasure." -- Los Angeles Times Book Review
"Leonard is the real thing. He raises the hard-boiled suspense novel beyond the limits of the genre." -- Washington Post Book World

ELMORE LEONARD has written more than forty books during his highly successful writing career, including the bestsellers Road Dogs, Up in Honey's Room, The Hot Kid, Mr. Paradise, Tishomingo Blues, and the critically acclaimed collection of short stories When the Women Come Out to Dance. Many of his books have been made into movies, including Get Shorty, Out of Sight, and Be Cool. He is the recipient of the National Book Foundation's medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, the Lifetime Achievement Award from PEN USA, and the Grand Master Award of the Mystery Writers of America. He lives in Bloomfield Village, Michigan.

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava. William Morrow Paperbacks, ISBN: 9780062227881 (December, 2012), 272 p., $14.99.

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava (USA 2009)

From the Publisher:
"ELMORE LEONARD PUTS MOST OF TODAY'S CRIME WRITERS TO SHAME." -- DENVER ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS
Joe LaBrava first fell in love with femme fatale movie queen Jean Shaw in a darkened theater when he was twelve. Now he's finally meeting his dream woman in the flesh, albeit in a rundown Miami crisis center. Cleaned up and sober, though, she still makes LaBrava's heart race. And now that Jean's being terrorized by redneck thug Richard Nobles and his slimy Marielito partner Cundo Rey, Joe has a golden opportunity to play the hero. Or he could wind up the patsy -- or dead -- in the final reel.

"LaBRAVA IS A MEAN-STREETS ROMANCE, LACONIC AND BITTERSWEET... . A FILM NOIR IN NOVEL FORM... . CHECK IT OUT." -- WASHINGTON POST BOOK WORLD

"THE TONE IS DRY AND MORDANT, THE ACTION WELL PACED, AND THE VOICES OF THE RIFFRAFF CONVINCING... . LaBRAVA MAY BE THE BEST OF MR. LEONARD'S BOOKS." -- NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW

"RIVETING AND EXHILARATING... TERSE AND TOUGH... . LEONARD IS A MASTER." -- NEW YORK NEWSDAY

ELMORE LEONARD has written more than three dozen books including the bestsellers The Hot Kid and Get Shorty, and the upcoming Road Dogs. Leonard has been named Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America, and he lives with his wife, Christine, in Bloomfield Village, Michigan.

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava. A Novel. Harper Paperbacks, ISBN: 9780061767692 (April, 2009), 414 p., $14.99.

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava (USA 2003)

From the Publisher:
Joe LaBrava first fell in love in a darkened movie theater when he was twelve -- with a gorgeous femme fatale up on the screen. Now the one-time Secret Service agent-turned-photographer is finally meeting his dream woman in the flesh, albeit in a rundown Miami crisis center. When she's cleaned up and sober, though, former movie queen Jean Shaw still makes LaBrava's heart race. And now she's being terrorized by a redneck thug and his slimy marielito partner, which gives Joe a golden opportunity to play the hero. But the lady's predicament is starting to resemble one of her earlier cinematic noirs. And if he's not careful, LaBrava could end up the patsy -- or dead -- in the final reel.

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava. HarperTorch, ISBN: 0060512237 (February, 2003), 417 p., $7.50.

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava (USA 1998 / 3rd printing)

From the Publisher:
"Riveting* and exhilarating... terse and tough... Leonard is a master." -- New York Newsday
LaBrava is vintage Leonard: a blend of the true-to-life and the totally make-believe, the cinematic and the suspenseful, the world we know and a whole lot of worlds we're glad we don't. Only Leonard can concoct such a potent cocktail: one part raw humanity, one part pure insanity, a dash of lethal action, and his irresistible, eccentric spice.

"Just about the best writer in crime fiction today." -- USA Today
"Terrific... Leonard's best novel so far." -- Philadelphia Inquirer
"Leonard is the real thing... . He raises the hard-boiled suspense novel beyond the limits of the genre." -- The Washington Post Book World
"A superb craftsman... His writing is pure pleasure." -- Los Angeles Times Book Review
"Dialogue so authentic it dances off the page." -- The New York Times

ELMORE LEONARD has written thirty-four novels, including Cuba Libre, Rum Punch, Get Shorty, Freaky Deaky, and Glitz, and numerous screenplays. He has an unparalleled reputation among lovers of mayhem, suspense, and just plain wonderful writing. Winner of a Grand Master Award from the Mystery Writers of America, he has been likened to everyone from Dostoevsky to Dickens to Dashiell Hammett -- but he is, in fact, entirely and entertainingly unique. He lives in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava. Quill / William Morrow, ISBN: 0688160972 (March, 1998 / 3rd printing, no date given), 283 p., $12.00.

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava (UK 1985)

From the Publisher:
LABRAVA WAS SO HOT IN SO MANY CITIES THAT FLORIDA SEEMED THE IDEAL PLACE TO COOL OFF...
Joe LaBrava came to Miami from busting fraud and met the girl of his dreams, Jean, movie actress with a hangover from the 1950s. And self-styled superstud Richie Nobles, a security guard in love with his own hair and muscles. And crazy Cuban reject Cundo Rey, maniac in a million in a leopard jockstrap with a black Cadillac...

And if you can believe the scam these three dreamed up, you're ready to read LaBrava.

'A gripping writer - really first-rate' -- New Yorker
'The best suspense writer in America' -- Miami Herald
'Thrilling... vivid...acute... anything else you want' -- City Limits

Winner of the Edgar Allan Poe Award

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava. Penguin Books, ISBN: 0140072381 (July, 1985), 283 p., £2,95.

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava (USA 1984 / 8th printing)

From the Publisher:
"LABRAVA IS PURE PLEASURE!" -- USA TODAY
Ex-secret service agent Joseph LaBrava had found paradise in south Miami Beach. The living was easy and actress Jean Shaw was soft, sexy, and seductive. She was also trouble. Because following right behind her white Cadillac was a redneck former cop who specialized in hurting people, a hot-blooded Cuban with a passion for killing, and a .357 Magnum with LaBrava's name on it...

ELMORE LEONARD has been hailed from coast to coast as America's leading writer of crime fiction. Avon Books is proud to publish many of his greatest works, including STICK and 52 PICK-UP.

"TOUGH AND SMART" -- THE NEW YORK TIMES
"FIRST CLASS" -- PEOPLE

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava. SHE'D DO ANYTHING FOR A MAN... EVEN GET HIM KILLED. Avon Books, ISBN: 0380692376 (October, 1984 / 8th printing, no date given), 246 p., $3,95.

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava (USA 1984 / 4th printing)

From the Publisher:
FADE TO BLACK
Ex - secret service agent Joseph LaBrava had it all under control. South Miami Beach action. Easy living in an old Deco hotel. A new start as a portrait photographer.

Then he met Jean Shaw. A once-famous actress. Still soft, sexy, and seductive. The kind of woman who heats up fantasies. For LaBrava, she was a trip to paradise... and a trip down the bad side of trouble.

Because following right behind her white Cadillac were a redneck former cop whose specialty was hurting people, a hot-blooded Cuban whose passions were dancing and killing, and a .357 Magnum with LaBrava's name on it. Suddenly the scene was shifting from love to money -- a bizarre, big-bucks scam with LaBrava forced into the tough-guy role -- and with murder in the picture.

"LABRAVA IS PURE PLEASURE." -- USA TODAY
"TERRIFIC" -- PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER
"TOUGH AND SMART" -- THE NEW YORK TIMES
SELECTED BY THE BOOK-OF-THE-MONTH CLUB
SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOVIE FROM UNIVERSAL PICTURES.

Elmore Leonard: LaBrava. SHE WAS A WOMAN WHO'D DO ANYTHING FOR A MAN... EVEN GET HIM KILLED. Avon Books, ISBN: 0380692376 (October, 1984 / 4th printing, no date given), 246 p., $3,95.