WAKING UP, Released March 9, 2010

When his 11-year old son is kidnapped and murdered, a downward-spiraling Michael Hayes faces the disintegration of his marriage and the collapse of his booming real estate career. Lack of progress by the police in finding the killer compels Hayes to embark on his own investigation, and he enlists the aid of an Eagle Realty colleague, Soo-Mee Yeong, while secretly seeking help from Joey Cortona, who has ties to the criminal underground. The trail points at Kazuhisa Enomoto, a Japanese mobster who, attempting to launder money, had suffered substantial losses in an Eagle real estate transaction mis-managed by Hayes. Their search leads Hayes and Yeong through the shadow world of drug smuggling and duplicitous real estate deals in America and Japan. Will they find and deliver the killer to justice? Can Hayes regain even a small portion of his former idyllic life? Joe Traum brings memorable characters, colorful locales, and a page-turning plot to this fascinating thriller. Click here to read the first chapter on amazon.com.

News!

Joe is Featured in Gotham Writers' Workshop June Newsletter

Gotham Writers' Workshop, where Joe trained in 2005 and 2006, spotlighted Joe's novel in its June newsletter. Here's a link.

Book Expo 2010

Joe attracted a large crowd at Book Expo, held at New York City's Javits Center, to his book-signing. In fact, Cambridge House Press ran out of books before the signing was scheduled to end. Check out pictures using this link.

Joe Will Be on the Radio (Again)

On Monday, August 2, at 4:00 p.m., Joe will be interviewed on WGCH's "The Book Biz With Drew Nederpelt," a new show originating from Greenwich, CT which can be heard in the New York Metropolitan Area on AM 1490.

Joe Will Appear Aug. 2 at Just Books, Old Greenwich, CT

From 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. on August 2, Joe will be the guest of Just Books at 28 Arcadia Road in the heart of Old Greenwich, CT. Come to meet Joe, sample the wine and cheese, and talk about Waking Up.

Praise for WAKING UP

“A debut novel set in the mesh worlds of real estate, finance and pharmaceuticals....Traum draws upon a career as a real-estate investment banker to lend this procedural a touch of realism.”
-- Kirkus Reviews, April 2010.

“Waking Up is a riveting thriller, sure to entertain many a reader.”
-- The Midwest Book Review, July 2010

“I’ve negotiated several real estate transactions with Joe Traum, so I know he’s clever, creative, always prepared, and fun. I expected he’d bring all these qualities to his first novel, Waking Up, and I wasn’t disappointed. The brilliantly crafted murder-mystery kept me turning pages through the night. And as for the real estate wheeling and dealing, it’s so realistic I almost sent in a counteroffer.”
-- R. Dary Stone, vice-chairman, Cousins Properties Incorporated (NYSE), Dallas, TX

“Once I learned English, I became an avid reader of American crime novels, my favorite authors being Robert B. Parker, Raymond Chandler and Mickey Spillane. Now I add Joe Traum to the list. Waking Up is colorfully and truthfully written, especially the parts that are set in my country, Japan. Joe’s novel is as excellent as his work when I was his client. It’s hard to believe it’s just his first.”
-- Kazuhiko Shibata, representative director, Symphony Financial Partners, Tokyo, Japan