What do you think?
Rate this book
HEARTS AREN'T THE ONLY THING BROKEN IN THE WORLD OF COUNTRY MUSIC...Music City P.I. Harry James Denton has a deep, dark secret that's dangerous to admit in Nashvegas...
He's not a huge fan of country music.
But when rising country music star Rebecca Gibson is found beaten to death, a heap of damning evidence points to her ex-husband and Harry's pal, Slim Gibson.
Short of cash, as always, Harry digs into the case and discovers the dark history of a marriage made somewhere way south of Heaven, somewhere deep in the cutthroat heart of the country music business, where deceit, betrayal, passion and vengeance are not only sung about... they're lived and died.
And because nothing in Harry's life is ever simple or easy, he's also got another situation to deal with. His girlfriend--who's also the Music City coroner--is being held hostage by a group of whacko cult religious fanatics in armed Winnebagos who don't want the body of their leader's wife autopsied.
For Harry James Denton, it's just one damn thing after another in this nail-biting, page-turning thriller that's the next installment in Steven Womack's award-winning, best-selling Music City Murders series. Nominated for the PWA Shamus Award, Way Past Dead will grab you and take you through so many twists and turns you won't be able to put it down until the last page.
You'll love Womack's writing. Readers have compared him to John D. MacDonald, only with a meat n' three-sized dose of smart-ass on steroids.
"A deft, atmosphere-rich smart, funny, and filled with a sense of wry heartbreak. Steven Womack's Nashville stands out..."---James Ellroy, New York Times bestselling author of L.A. Confidential
He's not a huge fan of country music.
But when rising country music star Rebecca Gibson is found beaten to death, a heap of damning evidence points to her ex-husband and Harry's pal, Slim Gibson.
Short of cash, as always, Harry digs into the case and discovers the dark history of a marriage made somewhere way south of Heaven, somewhere deep in the cutthroat heart of the country music business, where deceit, betrayal, passion and vengeance are not only sung about... they're lived and died.
And because nothing in Harry's life is ever simple or easy, he's also got another situation to deal with. His girlfriend--who's also the Music City coroner--is being held hostage by a group of whacko cult religious fanatics in armed Winnebagos who don't want the body of their leader's wife autopsied.
For Harry James Denton, it's just one damn thing after another in this nail-biting, page-turning thriller that's the next installment in Steven Womack's award-winning, best-selling Music City Murders series. Nominated for the PWA Shamus Award, Way Past Dead will grab you and take you through so many twists and turns you won't be able to put it down until the last page.
You'll love Womack's writing. Readers have compared him to John D. MacDonald, only with a meat n' three-sized dose of smart-ass on steroids.
"A deft, atmosphere-rich smart, funny, and filled with a sense of wry heartbreak. Steven Womack's Nashville stands out..."---James Ellroy, New York Times bestselling author of L.A. Confidential
443 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 30, 1995
95 people are currently reading
125 people want to read
About the author
Steven Womack
32 books43 followersWith the publication of his novel, FADE UP FROM BLACK: THE RETURN OF HARRY JAMES DENTON, Steven Womack brings back his award-winning MUSIC CITY MURDERS series, featuring P.I. Harry James Denton
Womack began his first novel when he was eighteen-years-old. A short eighteen years later, he finally sold one. His first published novel, MURPHY'S FAULT, was the only debut mystery on the 1990 New York Times Notable Book List. Since then, he has published ten more novels, winning both the Edgar and Shamus Awards, as well as receiving multiple nominations for major mystery awards.
His Edgar and Shamus Award-winning Harry James Denton MUSIC CITY MURDERS series--DEAD FOLKS' BLUES, TORCH TOWN BOOGIE, WAY PAST DEAD, NOBODY'S CHAIN LAYS STRAIGHT, A MANUAL OF MURDER and DIRTY MONEY--has been republished by Spearhead Press.
A scriptwriter as well, Womack co-wrote the screenplays for PROUDHEART, which was nominated for the CableAce Award, and VOLCANO: FIRE ON THE MOUNTAIN, an ABC television movie that was one of the most-watched television movies of the year.
Womack lives in Nashville, Tennessee, where for twenty-five years he anchored the screenwriting program at the Watkins Film School of Watkins College of Art. He also served five years as Chair of The Film School. When the college closed in May, 2020, he was the longest serving faculty member at the college.
A licensed pilot, Womack loves to fly and scuba dive in his spare time. Unfortunately, there hasn't been any spare time since 2001.
Visit his website at www.stevenwomack.com
Womack began his first novel when he was eighteen-years-old. A short eighteen years later, he finally sold one. His first published novel, MURPHY'S FAULT, was the only debut mystery on the 1990 New York Times Notable Book List. Since then, he has published ten more novels, winning both the Edgar and Shamus Awards, as well as receiving multiple nominations for major mystery awards.
His Edgar and Shamus Award-winning Harry James Denton MUSIC CITY MURDERS series--DEAD FOLKS' BLUES, TORCH TOWN BOOGIE, WAY PAST DEAD, NOBODY'S CHAIN LAYS STRAIGHT, A MANUAL OF MURDER and DIRTY MONEY--has been republished by Spearhead Press.
A scriptwriter as well, Womack co-wrote the screenplays for PROUDHEART, which was nominated for the CableAce Award, and VOLCANO: FIRE ON THE MOUNTAIN, an ABC television movie that was one of the most-watched television movies of the year.
Womack lives in Nashville, Tennessee, where for twenty-five years he anchored the screenwriting program at the Watkins Film School of Watkins College of Art. He also served five years as Chair of The Film School. When the college closed in May, 2020, he was the longest serving faculty member at the college.
A licensed pilot, Womack loves to fly and scuba dive in his spare time. Unfortunately, there hasn't been any spare time since 2001.
Visit his website at www.stevenwomack.com
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
September 2, 2018
Audible. Again, I love these because they were written while I lived in Nashville in the 90's and I KNOW these places, and even some of the situations grew out of news stories and incidents while I was living there. Just fun.
April 9, 2022
Good read
Even reading this series out of order, i am enjoying it more and more. I think that is because I am making a connection to the MC, Harry Denton. Harry is a left winged liberal, hates guns, dislikes religion and is generally someone i would not get along with in real life. He is, however, not a stupid person, and I do like smart people.
It is interesting how most of the time the MC is a bit wimpy, yet when he needs to have a pair, he is able to find them. He hates guns, but in at least one book carried one and in every book so far has found a moment or two where he wished he had one. Very conflicted guy if you ask me.
In this book i had the "who" figured out fairly quickly, and had to wonder what took Harry so long to figure it all out, but it was a fun ride to follow along on.
Even reading this series out of order, i am enjoying it more and more. I think that is because I am making a connection to the MC, Harry Denton. Harry is a left winged liberal, hates guns, dislikes religion and is generally someone i would not get along with in real life. He is, however, not a stupid person, and I do like smart people.
It is interesting how most of the time the MC is a bit wimpy, yet when he needs to have a pair, he is able to find them. He hates guns, but in at least one book carried one and in every book so far has found a moment or two where he wished he had one. Very conflicted guy if you ask me.
In this book i had the "who" figured out fairly quickly, and had to wonder what took Harry so long to figure it all out, but it was a fun ride to follow along on.
June 2, 2023
I am new to the Harry Denton series and admittedly hooked. The detective / mysteries are complex and entertaining but the true draw for me are the characters. They aren't perfect human beings but instead real flawed humans trying to get by in the world and get past their own histories. The images of Nashville are equally compelling - not the romanticized visions we normally see but flawed, just like the people who live their. #4 in the series is already waiting for me in my Kindle.
April 9, 2019
Way Past Dead
Wow! Loved this book. Great characters and nail biting action. Really liked Harry's friend Lonnie. Pretty cool guy. Ready to find the next adventure!
Wow! Loved this book. Great characters and nail biting action. Really liked Harry's friend Lonnie. Pretty cool guy. Ready to find the next adventure!
October 8, 2021
Love it!
I have enjoyed all the twists & turns. What an extremely enjoyable series. I have a hard time putting each book down. Thank so much!
I have enjoyed all the twists & turns. What an extremely enjoyable series. I have a hard time putting each book down. Thank so much!
October 24, 2021
Another winner!
Another great page Turner from this author. Difficult to put down. Highly engaging with lots of excitement! Enjoyed reading this book!
Another great page Turner from this author. Difficult to put down. Highly engaging with lots of excitement! Enjoyed reading this book!
November 9, 2021
Great read.
January 22, 2022
Great book! I read it in one sitting as I could not stop reading. This was a nail bitter. So much non stop action. Great characters. I love this series!
April 11, 2022
I’ve enjoyed the three books in this series I have read so far.
June 12, 2022
Another excellent addition to the series.
Read
December 25, 2022Still good
This was a busy little book with lots of side plots going on. Harry is still a good guy and all his 'colleagues' are well thought out.
This was a busy little book with lots of side plots going on. Harry is still a good guy and all his 'colleagues' are well thought out.
February 9, 2023
What a great series! Nashville never seemed so interesting before.
June 17, 2024
This was an ok book. Not tremendous but fun.
January 18, 2024
There are some books that I want to like. That’s usually the case when I find new authors who are trying to build some great characters and a great series of books. Steven Womack’s Music City Murders series has shown promise, so I kept sticking with it, despite the fact that I grew frustrated with some of the stories. His main character, Harry Denton, is a former reporter who decided to try his hand at being a private investigator. I’ve attributed some of the problems I had with the stories to Harry’s inexperience. There comes a point, though, where Harry needs to grow a bit. Way Past Dead was not the book where that happened.
Down the hall from Harry’s private investigator office are two songwriters who have been trying to hit it big in Nashville for a while. Harry’s not a fan of country music, but he’s willing to support his friends and goes to see them play one night. The lead singer is the ex-wife of one of his friends. Rebecca Gibson is about to hit the big-time, leaving Slim Gibson in the dust. That is, until she is found brutally beaten to death the following morning.
Slim is arrested for the murder, and his songwriting partner asks Harry to find the real killer. The evidence against Slim is pretty damning, but Harry doesn’t believe his friend is guilty despite that. To top things off, Harry’s girlfriend, the City’s coroner, is being held hostage in her office by some religious fanatics who don’t want her doing an autopsy on their leader’s wife.
I had a hard time liking Way Past Dead although I did like the characters themselves. Rebecca Gibson was interesting as someone who has tried for years to make it big and hasn’t really sold her soul to do that. The more Harry digs, the less he comes up with. She hasn’t really wronged anyone, so there’s no motive other than a jealous ex-husband. Slim loved her, that is obvious, and his partner cares enough about him to do what it takes to see him cleared. They are good people caught up in a shady industry.
To read my full review, please go to: https://thoughtsfromthemountaintop.co...
Down the hall from Harry’s private investigator office are two songwriters who have been trying to hit it big in Nashville for a while. Harry’s not a fan of country music, but he’s willing to support his friends and goes to see them play one night. The lead singer is the ex-wife of one of his friends. Rebecca Gibson is about to hit the big-time, leaving Slim Gibson in the dust. That is, until she is found brutally beaten to death the following morning.
Slim is arrested for the murder, and his songwriting partner asks Harry to find the real killer. The evidence against Slim is pretty damning, but Harry doesn’t believe his friend is guilty despite that. To top things off, Harry’s girlfriend, the City’s coroner, is being held hostage in her office by some religious fanatics who don’t want her doing an autopsy on their leader’s wife.
I had a hard time liking Way Past Dead although I did like the characters themselves. Rebecca Gibson was interesting as someone who has tried for years to make it big and hasn’t really sold her soul to do that. The more Harry digs, the less he comes up with. She hasn’t really wronged anyone, so there’s no motive other than a jealous ex-husband. Slim loved her, that is obvious, and his partner cares enough about him to do what it takes to see him cleared. They are good people caught up in a shady industry.
To read my full review, please go to: https://thoughtsfromthemountaintop.co...
January 1, 2014
Decent mystery. Will try a couple more. Like the setting; the detective (Harry James Denton) is evolving.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews