Pearce Hansen

About me:

Due to a less than idyllic family environment, I grew up without any positive adult supervision whatsoever. As is to be expected when a child is taught that he is worthless and has to raise himself, many of that long ago little boy’s life decisions were less than optimum. He paid the price for those childhood choices, I assure you – and I take full responsibility for them all.

At a tender age I had intimate interactions with people occupying every link in the food chain of the Life. I have been homeless on numerous occasions, and a drug addict who committed petty crime to support my habit. I have been incarcerated briefly here and abroad (though never in prison). Not a cargo of experience recommended for amateurs, the old definition of ‘adventure’ definitely applies: ‘terror in retrospect.'

Ironically my brothers and I were among the first children to take the SAT, and were told that we were geniuses. Despite that encouragement and the opportunities implied, I dropped out of school twice (once for a year) and was put into Special Ed in the belief that I was mentally subnormal – the ‘short bus’ experience was a hilarious interlude as you might imagine. I have a high school diploma but only due to California’s then-policy of ‘social promotion’ – omnivorous reading has been the only thing that saved me from total ignorance, I’m pretty much self-educated.

Still, that is only my past: worthy of note but no more. I have been with my wife Pia for 23 years. I have successfully raised my son Levi (and whose wedding I just attended). My friends and my family are my wealth and I have no complaints.

I am no poster child for the Underbelly – many of my friends survived much worse than I did. Nor am I smugly boasting of my attainment to ‘normalcy,’ of having become a Citizen (even though it still feels like a masquerade sometimes). If anything the schizophrenia of having a foot in both those worlds often makes for awkwardness and difficulty. Still, such a parallax view may help me produce writing of interest to the reader even if synthesizing such disparate experiences is jarring at times for me.

Everyone’s got troubles. No one here gets out alive. We make our own hope and meaning, and all we have is each other, there are no excuses. Maybe I am a twisted mutant freak, maybe I am no more than an alien spy on the Monkey Planet -- but I’m still the luckiest man on the face of the earth.

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"When Speedy raises from Pelican Bay State Prison, he hitchhikes home to Oakland only to find his brother Little Willy a homeless crackhead and his best friend Fat Bob bouncing in San Francisco's underground hardcore clubs. When two of their childhood homeboys get wrapped in chains by Mexican Mafia slangers and thrown in the American River alive, our heroes somehow get it together enough to plot revenge."

"Sure, it maybe takes the edge off Speedy's game a little when he starts playing house with beautiful phone psychic Carmel, and it complicates things a bit more when Louis, the same cop who put him in prison, starts dogging their steps like an unwelcome relative. But when a racist coven of skinz comes howling for Speedy & Carmel's blood, and a serial killer with a Monster in his head decides Speedy is the answer to all his unholy prayers, things get REALLY interesting . . ."

“A fast, ferocious and often ugly ride through the East Bay's feral underground.” Eddie Muller at the San Francisco Chronicle.

"STREET RAISED is a full-tilt, dead-on descent into the Bay Area underworld, with lovably flawed characters and stunning dialogue. Every page, it seems, has something to marvel at. This is literary crime of the highest order, on par with the work of the great Eddie Bunker. Pearce Hansen is a major new talent." Jason Starr, author of LIGHTS OUT and THE FOLLOWER.

"The heir to Vachss. One of the best writers I know." Ken Bruen (author of the Shamus Award winning novel THE GUARDS, soon to be a major motion picture starring David Soul).

“STREET RAISED is a scar of a book, but it's a beautifully healed scar. Gutsy, fast-paced, written in an electric style. Recommended.” Joe Lansdale (author of BUBBA HO-TEP starring Bruce Campbell).

"An outstanding crime fiction debut. You've bucket loads of talent." Allan Guthrie (author of HARD MAN and Hard Case Crime's KISS HER GOODBYE).

"Pearce is a wild man, and demands your attention. Hansen is definitely one of the gonzo crowd and deserves a stage with a loud amplifier and some bright lights." Anthony Neil Smith, Editor of Plots With Guns.

“One of the best crime novels I’ve read in a long time. This is a sleeper and you should not miss it!” Gary Lovisi at Hardboiled Magazine.

"A slick, sly, suspenseful yarn, with a voice and style all its own. You won't want to miss THIS one." Ed Gorman of Mystery Scene Magazine.

"I damn near did a solo ho-down after reading STREET RAISED. The heroes are the bad guys of other novels, and they make this one of the best books of 2006.” Jennifer Jordan at Crime Spree Magazine.

“Shades of Elmore Leonard in this debut novel. There's an energy and genuine authenticity in Hansen's witty, gritty and cool-ly noir-esque depiction of life on the streets.” Crime Scene Scotland.

“The Black Hole of Noir. Hansen writes stuff that is so damn dark and right on that it’s scary. This is a voice that needs to be heard, and demands a wide audience. Without a doubt one of the top 3 books I have read this year.” Aldo Calcagno at Mystery Dawg.

"Hansen's unflinching (and completely engrossing) take will change how you feel about other crime writers. Kudos to Allan Guthrie and PointBlank Press for offering a forum to a powerful new voice, and to Hansen for writing what is without a doubt the most affecting crime novel of the year." Craig's Book Club.

“I’ve really got to hand it to Pearce for writing a book like this: so visceral, raw and unapologetic. It’s a breath of fresh air for a crime story.” Bookgasm.

“There are those who write about the street, and those who write from the street. Mr. Hansen has obviously walked that walk, and speaks the language of the down and out with a heartbreaking, frightening realism. Gutter-low and dirty, the way we like our women.” Todd Anderson at Thug Lit.

“Damn, I haven't been as impressed with a debut in a long time. The first thing I'm always looking for is a strong, distinctive voice and this guy's got it. This book has a little something for everyone, and Hansen doles it out with passion and authenticity.” Patrick Millikin of Poisoned Pen Bookstore.

“Pearce Hansen has lived through those nightmares the rest of us mostly dream about. Street Raised is the stuff that great movies are made of.” Tribe’s Blog.

"My kind of writing, my kind of neo-noir. Mr. Hansen does not disappoint." Cormac Brown.

“The real deal. He’s got street cred.” Ian Mouer (“I Am An 80s SF Punk Rock Survivor:” Barnes&Noble Review).

“A stark interpretation of low life in the big city, seen through the eyes of one of its residents. Hansen is poised to receive a degree of notoriety as soon as STREET RAISED makes it.” Eureka Times-Standard.

“Portrays the anti-hero and shows the underbelly of society. STREET RAISED shows how one man’s life difficulties can produce a positive piece of art.” The Lumberjack.

"This is not fodder for children. STREET RAISED is a work that includes a generous dose of Pearce's own life and has its basis in often painful facts." The Eureka Reporter.

Author interview at The North Coast Journal