Contemporary Thrillers THE SQUATTERS with Vincent Zandri

If a Squatter Takes Over Your Home, do You Politely Give Up? Or do You Fight for What’s Yours? Even if it’s a Fight to the Death!

When a thrice married crime writer notices his wife is unhappy due to the time he devotes to his work, he decides to spend the summer with her on a family-owned island on the Hudson River. The only problem is that some Mexican Cartel connected squatters has taken over the island for their drug-running operation. The writer and his wife might think twice about challenging the deadly gangsters. But the unlikely duo is not about to give up on what’s theirs without a fight.

It’s a fight to the death, Alamo style, in this brand-new pulse-pounding thriller from New York Times and USA Today bestselling Thriller and Shamus Award winning author Vincent Zandri. For fans of Don Winslow, Charlie Houston, Michael Connelly, and more.

Vincent Zandri recently sat down with The Big Thrill to discuss his latest contemporary thriller, THE SQUATTERS.

Vincent Zandri

Can you pinpoint a moment or incident that sparked the idea for this book?

There have been a lot of terrible things that have occurred over the past four years that have become a real threat to Americans as a whole. It almost seems as though it’s all been carefully planned. My guess it was. One of these is the new laws engineered on behalf of so-called “squatter’s rights.” That might make some “on the take” and soulless politico (right and left) feel all cozy inside about supporting the criminal over that of the innocent victim, but when it comes to someone stealing your shit, especially your house, you need to take a stand and fight them.

When you first created your protagonist for this book, did you see an empty space in crime lit that you wanted to fill? What can you share about the inspiration for that character?

I couldn’t imagine two more unlikely characters becoming as tough as Jim Bowie fighting to the death for the Alamo. In this case a writer and an editor who are married. The setting is no accident either. A private island on the Hudson River owned by the same family for decades that’s still got a log cabin on it but that’s within proximity to Manhattan.

Were there any particular books, movies, or songs that were knocking around in your head while you were writing this one?

I’m always thinking about “Dirty Harry” when I write these “vengeance is mine” style novels. THE SQUATTERS was no exception. It was all about fighting the criminal element that exists not only on the streets, but in our corrupt government also.