Twenty-one-year-old Hardy “Hardly” Reed—good-natured, easy going, usually stoned—is drifting through life. A minimum-wage scare actor at an amusement park, he avoids unnecessary effort and unrealistic ambitions. Then one day he notices two children, around six or seven, sitting all alone on a bench. Hardly checks if they’re okay and sees injuries on both children. Someone is hurting these kids. He reports the incident to Child Protective Service. That should be the end of it. But he's haunted by the two kids, his heart breaking for them. And the more research he does the less he trusts that Child Protective Services —understaffed and overworked—will do anything about it. That leaves…Hardly. He is probably the last person you’d ever want to count on.

But those two kids have nobody else but him. Hardly has to do what's right and help them. Gradually, with assistance from unexpected allies, he develops investigative skills and discovers he’s smarter and more capable than he ever imagined. But Hardly also discovers that the situation is more dangerous than he ever expected...

- Browns Books Synopsis

The CWA is a thriving, growing community and a broad church. Its membership encompasses writers of all kinds of ‘crime’ – embracing procedural, psychological, all types of thriller, cosy, noir and even supernatural and fantasy cross-over. Writers of all crime-related non-fiction, including true crime, are welcomed too. Authors are of all ages and at all stages of their careers,from young debuts to established veterans, and while the CWA is UK-based, it attracts many members from overseas.