Mystery: Cops & Crooks in California (2009): Los Angeles Times Festival of Books

The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books began in 1996 with a simple to bring together the people who create books with the people who love to read them. The festival was an immediate success and has become the largest and most prestigious book festival in the country, attracting more than 130,000 book lovers each year.Robert Crais, an Edgar Award nominee, is the author of numerous New York Times best sellers, including The Two Minute Rule, The Forgotten Man, and The Watchman. Chasing Darkness is his latest novel. Crais was also the recipient of the 2006 Ross Macdonald Literary Award.T. Jefferson Parker has written many novels, including Silent Joe, which won the Mystery Writers of America's Edgar Award for Best Novel and the 2001 Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Mystery/Thriller. His latest works are L.A. Outlaws and The Renegades.Joseph Wambaugh, a former LAPD detective sergeant, is the best-selling author of 16 prior works of fiction and nonfiction, including The Choirboys and The Onion Field. In 2004, he was named Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America. His most recent novel is Hollywood Station.Don Winslow is a former private investigator and consultant. His book California Fire and Life received the Shamus Award, and his novel The Winter of Frankie Machine has been purchased for Robert DeNiro to play the lead role. Winslow's latest novel is The Dawn of Patrol, which is a 2009 Edgar Award finalist.