Shadows on Sidewalks: A Novel

by James Grady

A cinematic and propulsive thriller from the author of Six Days Of The Condor and American Sky.

Bob Dylan once declared that "Sex and politics and murder is the way to go if you want to get people's attention," and readers won't be able to look away from Shadows on Sidewalks, the new erotic thriller from James Grady.

James Traven returns home to his small Montana town in autumn 2024 to care for his mother after a devasting fall. He quickly finds himself trapped in a life-threateneing web of lies and lust. With the clock ticking, Traven must save the savvy and beautiful Lana LaBuff from almost-certain murder. Complicating things is her monstrous husband and the fact that their only ally is Cody, the mysterious former Marine who runs the local gun shop and regularly ghosts on ordinary life.

Fresh and fast-paced, Shadow on Sidewalks takes us on a roller coaster ride through old age, racism, anger, sorrow, lust, and love. From the click of a cocked pistol to the distress signal—an "S.O.S."—emitted as James and Lana fight amidst a swirl of personal and political struggles, James Grady demonstratses his mastery of the noir form and shines a light on the modern condition.

256 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 5, 2026

About the author

James Grady is a longtime author of thrillers, police procedural and espionage novels. He graduated from the University of Montana School of Journalism in 1974. During college, he worked for United States Senator Lee Metcalf of Montana as an staff member.

From 1974 - 1978 he was an investigative journalist for the famous muckraker Jack Anderson. Best known as the author of Six Days of the Condor , which was adapted to film as Three Days of the Condor starring Robert Redford in 1975.

James Grady has gone on to write almost a dozen more novels in the thirty-eight years since Six Days of the Condor was published.

In the past James Grady has written under the pseudonyms of James Dalton and Brit Shelby.

Reviews

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was gifted this book as part of BookSparks Summer Reading Challenge.

I'm going to preface this with I am clearly not the intended audience for this book, and am not a fan of the noir genre 😅

I was not a fan of the prose - it was meandering, and didn't make a whole lot of sense.

From what I can tell this is a standalone book, but it feels like we're just thrown into the middle of a story with no background or context.

The plot was just ridiculous; and not in a good way.

[Kale Sparling · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read (listened) to the book before seeing any reviews. Glad I didn't see the other reviews first. I found the noir style enjoyable and engaging. I can see why it's not for everyone, however this book was engaging from start to finish. The social commentary of the present-day setting combined with the crimes, desires, and motivations that are as old as humanity made for a thoughtful and entertaining read.

[Candice Hale · Rating 2 out of 5]

🌟 𝕄𝕪 𝔹𝕠𝕠𝕜𝕚𝕤𝕙 𝕋𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕤 🌟
⁣
Featured Book: 𝙎𝙝𝙖𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙨 𝙤𝙣 𝙎𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙬𝙖𝙡𝙠𝙨 by James Grady

Thanks #partners @booksparks, @recordedbooks, @libby.app, and @pegasus_books for the immersive reading experience.

James Grady’s 𝙎𝙝𝙖𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙨 𝙤𝙣 𝙎𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙬𝙖𝙡𝙠𝙨 captures interest with a strong premise and an intriguing storyline. As someone who enjoys noir suspense and crime thrillers, I was curious to see how the characters and plot developed in this new author for me.

However, the book’s pacing, underdeveloped characters, and wandering story prevented me from forming a real connection with it. This made it hard to stay grounded or invested enough to care about what was happening or what was coming through my earbuds. The story often diverged into tangents unrelated to the main theme, such as frequent pop culture references and name-dropping, which caused me to lose track of the plot and sometimes required me to restart chapters.

While I usually finish a book in 2-3 days, it took me about 4-5 days to read and listen to this one. Finishing it was a relief, especially since there were moments when I almost DNFed it because I couldn’t clearly see the book’s main purpose or what it was meant to accomplish. I only read enough to grasp the twist at the end, but it felt disconnected from the overall plot. The characters’ backstories were underdeveloped, so I didn't feel I truly knew them.

I didn’t enjoy this book, but that doesn’t mean others wouldn’t. The author’s writing style wasn’t quite to my taste, so it just wasn’t for me. I recognize that not all books or authors appeal to everyone, and that’s perfectly okay.

𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: ⭐️⭐️

🏷 #ShadowsOnSidewalks #JamesGrady #TheBookOdyssey #Noir #CandiceReads #HaleYeahBooks #wellreadblackgirl #Bookstagrammer

[Chalon J · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book leans into a fast-paced, noir-style tale that leaves you questioning the motivations of each character, their connections with each other, and how their secrets will be revealed. I enjoyed how the author wove in current events and how today's political environment impacts small towns as a throughline to James and Lana's story.

I was intrigued by the premise and how the connection between James and Lana would develop as tensions began to rise, and I wished there was more time spent on deepening their emotional connection.

Lana is described as an indigenous woman, and I would have appreciated more nuance shown in descriptions of cultural identity and how that impacted her choices and decisions as the wife of a rich, powerful, and corrupt man.

Overall, this book leaned into unexpected twists, and I would have enjoyed more time spent understanding the characters as people to increase the impact of their decisions and make me feel invested in the storyline.

[Ranisha Davis]

Shout out to Book Sparks for gifting me this cool PR box with all of the goodies to have me SAT for this year’s summer reading challenge. The bucket hat was definitely my fave part of the entire box. 💙 #SRC2026

I was a bit hesitant on this one because I had never read an erotic thriller before. Not like this anyway. But it doesn’t hurt to try right? Unfortunately after getting 40% in, I had to accept the fact that this book wasn’t for me. The first chapter had a bit going on. I continued because world building has to happen before getting to the meat and potatoes. But as I kept reading I felt like the premise was missing. That I was getting more than what I bargained for. While this book wasn’t for me, it can very well be for you. If it’s been on your radar, give it a try and form your own opinion.

[Dea Farrell · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️ rounded down

Shadows On Sidewalks is a noir-like novel that is a quick read. The male main character, James Traven, is a writer who gets himself entangled with the beautiful Lana LeBuff. This leads him down a path of sex, lies, and almost death. This little doozy of a book brings to attention a lot of today's political and social climate. It also delves deep into greed and corruption, but also the good that's still left in humanity. James is definitely a quirky character with tics, which may turn off a lot of readers, but if you dig down into the deeper meaning of the story, I think many readers will be pleasantly surprised by this one.

[Danielle Jamie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was gifted this book thru booksparks, I’ve never read anything by Jane Grady. I was excited it was a thriller and the cover was intriguing. But this was…. Dry. Poorly written. Jumps around bluntly! The story was lame, I almost DNF’d multiple times but I felt forced to finish since it was a PR package and I hate not finishing and I kept wanting to know what happens to Lana. But there was nothing thrilling about this, and erotic?! Gosh no! The sex scenes were seriously cringe. 2 stars is generous!

[ashalina_naturalista]

I got this book free from Booksparks in exchange for my honest review. I did not leave a rating because I was unable to finish the book. I couldn't follow the plot. The storyline jumped around and the mmc didn't seem to have a clear cut vision or thought process for that matter. The book jumped into sexual language quickly and out of nowhere. The book was just weird to me, and I discovered I can't read the neo-noir genre of fiction.

[Books Amongst Friends · Rating 2 out of 5]

Format: Gifted Hardback & Audiobook
Themes & Messages: 2/5
Writing & Execution: 1.5/5
Story Overall: 1.5/5
Narration: 2.5/5
Enjoyment: 1.5/5

I was excited to read this book as part of my ambassadorship with the BookSparks summer reading challenge. It was the first of four titles I’ve been gifted and I was intrigued by the concept. Unfortunately I don’t have much more to say about this read. Well, nothing truly positive at least….

As someone who loves a good noir, I had high hopes for this book. Though it seems as if the book forgot it was a noir until 2/3 of the way through and the plot/crime played background to our mmc’s attraction to this woman he just met. Now I recognized that this is an erotic thriller, but it lacked in that regard as well. We kind of get thrown into the “story” the same way the mmc is thrown into a random situation in which he’s told he has to sleep with some man’s wife. There’s not really any backstory or character development. I honestly felt that the book was clearly told from a standpoint of male pleasure and missed the mark on creating a better developed noir plot.

The story is described in a way that will hook a lot of readers and spark curiosity. I just don’t think I’m the intended audience for this book.

[Terry · Rating 1 out of 5]

Absolutely terrible dialogue

[chill_book_reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review to come