Once Upon a Time in LA

Written by the Grammy-nominated Howard Paar, Once Upon a Time in LA is a dark, thrilling ride deep into the lives of a megalomaniac record label chairman, mob-related radio promotion men, and a young band that gets sucked into the vortex. Once Upon a Time in LA has been released by Over the Edge Books with the book's soundtrack available at http://bit.ly/oncesnd. The unique 70-song soundtrack for this book includes songs by The Clash, Isaac Hayes, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Kraftwerk, The New York Dolls, Patsy Cline, Primal Scream, George Jones, and many more. Fine art photographer Mona Kuhn shot the cover and is creating a companion series of iconic images from the story.

This rock 'n roll noir novel follows music exec James Dual as he battles ghosts of his past in watering holes from Hollywood to Nashville to Mexico. James finds himself quickly drawn into a web of blackmail, violence, and murder after he receives a cassette tape from a neo-noir femme fatale implicating him in a tragedy from 20 years ago. The story pulses with mythic songs and stories from when music defined reality and meant everything to those who gave their lives over to it.

Howard Paar's work with a diverse range of artists and filmmakers including Larry Clark, Quentin Tarantino, Patty Jenkins, and Gregg Araki have earned Paar a reputation for independent vision and authenticity to character, time, and place and that voice comes through in his first novel, Once Upon a Time in LA.

Advance Praise for Once Upon a Time in LA

"My favorite mysteries don't just solve a murder, they introduce me to a new world. In Once Upon a Time in LA, veteran LA music insider and expat Brit Howard Paar takes us on a joyride through the vanished world of 1970s to 90s LA rock 'n roll. Authentic, fierce, gritty, and moving, with loads of local color and scenes along the Sunset Strip, Malibu, and Hollywood record offices and nightclubs, this is a welcome addition to LA's mystery literature and Paar is an author to watch." -- Denise Hamilton, LA crime writer and editor of the short story anthology Los Angeles Noir

"Infused with an outsider's affection for LA, Howard Paar's lively noir is distinguished by the author's irrepressible love of music and an insider's savvy take on all the dark twisted corners of the record biz." -- Steve Erickson, author of Days Between Stations, Tours of The Black Clock, Zeroville, and These Dreams of You