Reporter Eddie Bourque chases stories for the Lowell Empire, a second-class rag in a Massachusetts city of first-generation immigrants and bare-knuckled politicians. The talented and ambitious Eddie has one eye on finding a better job. However, when the dead junkie found floating in a mill canal is identified as his beat partner, he gives the story his full attention. That is, until he finds himself stonewalled by powerbrokers in Lowell law enforcement—and at his own newspaper.

Bent on finding his partner’s killer, Eddie disobeys orders and follows a mysterious Cambodian woman into the city’s poorest neighborhood—with violent results. Battered, dumped in a canal and left for dead, Eddie survives an encounter with an invisible underworld, only to find himself entangled in an international plot of murder and revenge.

It’s do or die for Eddie as he struggles to stay one step ahead of ruthless hitmen, the city’s self-serving power elite, and the curious police detective who always shows up when Eddie wishes she wouldn’t. The story of a lifetime beckons, but the closer he comes to the truth, the greater the chance that the story–and Eddie will be spiked.

Reviews

“Arsenault has a fine ear for the rhythms of a low-rent paper. He brings it to life with suitably salty characters and wonderful similes-the editor's "hands were plump and soft, like pud-ding in rubber gloves." Even though Bourque proves inexplicably willing to give away the biggest story of his career, his tale is mostly a front-page treat.” --Booklist

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"In the fading manufacturing city of Lowell, Mass., Eddie Bourque, a political reporter for the shoddy Lowell Empire, looks into the brutal murder of his newspaper beat partner and rival, Danny Nowlin. Bourque suspects the killing is tied to a story Nowlin was working on undercover, but the newspaper's owners, high up in Lowell's power structure, discourage Bourque from pursuing his investigation. The author brings Lowell with its slums, empty factories and vying political factions vividly alive. He peoples his novel with quirky, memorable characters....As Bourque probes Nowlin's secrets, he finds a confusing assortment of violent people with conflicting motives out to get him. A fine writer, Arsenault keeps the tension building right up to the surprise ending." —Publishers Weekly

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"Arsenault is very alert to local color and landscape, conjuring up Lowell's mill-riddled past, its different neighborhoods and hangouts, and a cast of characters at the newspaper who may or may not be trustworthy but certainly know how to play a good game. The smell of newsprint permeates the tale as well as all the bureaucratic intrigues within the newsroom and the boardroom...For a first novel, Spiked is tight, fast, clever and incisive. I practically swallowed it at a single gulp. For reporter Mark Arsenault, who lives in Cranston, this is a sure-footed, quick-witted debut." -Providence Journal Bulletin

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"Solid prose, an indefatigable protagonist, and the gritty backdrop of Lowell, MA, make this a sturdy debut mystery. For regional and larger collections." –Library Journal