Former quarterback turned Edgar-winning author Eli Cranor throws a glorious game winner in this series debut starring a rookie FBI agent who finds herself caught in the tangled web of a college football empire—and the bloody greed that fuels it.

It's always a good time when Eli Cranor stops by Tombolo Books! We are so excited to welcome back the award-winning author to the bookstore to celebrate the release of his fourth novel, Mississippi Blue 42! 

In the vein of Carl Hiaasen and Sue Grafton, Mississippi Blue 42 takes a hard and often hilarious look at the big-money world of college athletics. In Cranor’s capable hands, football isn’t just a game, it’s a front-row seat to the great American show.

Cranor will be joined in conversation by NYT and internationally best-selling author Lisa Unger!

More about Mississippi Blue 42

Special Agent Rae Johnson grew up on football fields alongside her father, a national-championship-winning coach. Which is exactly why, fresh out of Quantico, she’s sent down to Compson, Mississippi, to investigate the illicit money flowing into a bustling football program in the heart of the Delta. But two days into the assignment things take a dire turn when UCM’s star quarterback is flung from the roof of a college bar, lands on a bag of money, and dies.

Hoping to turn a routine fraud case into a career-defining bust, Rae ingratiates herself with the fans, coaches, players, and politicians who make up the university’s complex social hierarchy. With rumors of corruption rustling through the kudzu vines, Rae soon realizes there’s more to the game than what she’d learned as a child. And in order to win, she’ll have to put all her father’s lessons to the ultimate test.

Nationally bestselling, Edgar Award–winning author Eli Cranor played quarterback at every level: peewee to professional. These days, he serves as the “Writer in Residence” at Arkansas Tech, where he also lends his eye—and sometimes, his arm—to the university’s football team. Eli’s column, “Where I’m Writing From,” appears weekly in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. His previous works include Don’t Know Tough, Ozark Dogs, and Broiler.

Lisa Unger is a NYT and internationally bestselling author. Her books are published in 33 languages, with millions of copies sold worldwide. In 2019, she received two Edgar Award nominations, an honor held by only a few writers including Agatha Christie. Her work has been named on "Best Book" lists from Today, People, GMA, EW, Amazon, IndieBound and many others. She has written for the NYT, WSJ, NPR, and Travel+Leisure. She lives in Florida with her family.