The Samaritan

After a youth marked by the death of his parents and a childhood spent with his shaman grandfather on the Cattaraugus Indian Reservation, Kevin “Hatch” Easter has found a job he believes in--tracker for the CIA--and a wife, Karen, he cherishes. But his life is shattered on a hot August night in New York City when a mob collection gone wrong leaves three people dead, Karen Easter among them.Just a few days later, police find the gunman dead, the murder weapon on him, and the criminal case is all but closed.Except someone doesn't buy it. Someone thinks the guilty parties are still out there. And that someone wants revenge.Now, a highly professional hunter stalks the streets of New York City, taking out anyone who may have had a hand in the murders. Is it Kevin Easter the hunter? And if he is, is it the CIA's job to save him--or to kill him? The Samaritan is a chilling, pulse-pounding novel--a powerful story of love, death, and the terrible repercussions of both.

Steve Besecker is a graduate of Orchard Park High School (Orchard Park, NY) and St. Bonaventure University (near Olean, NY). He was born in Somersworth, NH, grew up in East Aurora, NY, and lived briefly in Palos Park, Illinois, before his family settled south of Buffalo. Like many young boys growing up in Western New York, Steve had every intention of becoming a professional hockey player, setting his sights on the National Hockey League and the Buffalo Sabres. Nevertheless, at the ripe young age of fifteen, Steve realized that his hockey talent did not measure up to his passion for the sport, and he began rethinking his future. The professors and Franciscan community at St. Bonaventure University opened Steve's eyes to philosophy, business marketing, and creative writing. He earned a St. Bonaventure degree in Marketing Management, while also earning the distinction of being assistant captain of St. Bonaventure's varsity hockey team.With the help of various creative writing teachers, and the guidance and tough love of retired Doubleday editor Bill Thompson, who worked with Stephen King, John Grisham, Pat Conroy, Peter Straub, and many commercially successful authors early in their careers, Steve developed the character of Native American Kevin “Little Crow” Easter, the CIA hunter and protagonist of The Samaritan and subsequent planned thrillers. An avid fly-fisherman, skier, hockey player, and youth soccer coach, Steve Besecker also enjoys skiing, hiking, snow shoeing, biking, and mini-triathlons. Steve's an active member of both the International Thriller Writers, Inc., and the American Society of Journalists and Authors.Steve lives in Western New York and is presently writing another thriller that includes Kevin "Hatch" Easter, Gray Taylor, and many of the characters from The Samaritan.