What the critics say.

Publishers Weekly : Dunston Falls

“…the author's skill at creating tension in his claustrophobic setting suggests the story would have satisfied without this final twist. Echoes of M. Night Shyamalan's The Sixth Sense and Dennis Lehane's Shutter Island add to the menacing mood.”

The Mystery Gazette:Dunston Falls

“This exhilarating police procedural thriller takes a wild twist into science fiction territory that works very well….Readers will receive two shocks; first the spin from mystery-suspense to sci fi, which explains the headaches; and then the identity of the killer and why.”

I Love A Mystery: Dunston Falls

“This thriller would be a great read sitting at the ocean on the hottest, sunniest day of the year. Lamanda captures the human predicament of a rural town isolated by snow and ice. I look forward to more exciting novels from Lamanda.”

Romance Reviews Today: Dunston Falls

“DUNSTON FALLS is an excellent book, very original, and I highly recommend it to thriller fans. It is a frightening story that I will have on my mind for weeks to come.”

The Mystery Gazette: Walking Homeless
“This is a super fast-paced action thriller that hooks the audience with wanting to know (just like Taft) who is Tibbets as he killed three muggers a couple of nights before the rescue incident made him famous and a target. Fans will appreciate this powerful action-packed tale with several great twists that lead to a one sitting need to know thriller”
Kirkus Reviews: Walking Homeless

“As in his debut (Dunston Falls, 2008), Lamanda provides thrills, chills and a final twist that make this entry stand out.”

Mystery Review: Walking Homeless
“Walking Homeless is a stunning book.  Besides being an excellent thriller, its underlying message makes you think about how we, as a society, view the neediest, least capable among us.  It’s not a pretty picture.”
Portland Press Herald: Walking Homeless

“Fast-moving. Polished. Taut. These are qualities that dominated my thoughts as I neared the end of "Walking Homeless," a thriller by Al Lamanda.  Like the bridge overhead, the route Tibbets travels in "Walking Homeless" may at times look straight and stable. Unlike the bridge, however, it is marked by unanticipated twists and turns that threaten to knock the story off track. It doesn't happen.

That's a tribute to Lamanda's skills at keeping a complex story in play. Let's hope he misses no chance to use them.”

Kirkus Reviews: Running Homeless
“An amnesiac searches for answers about the people he’s executed… Despite leaving a trail of death, Tibbets is a sympathetic character. Like a flawed Jack Reacher, he provides all the excitement of a first-class thriller”