Trey Gowdy, the former congressman and prosecutor, said The Color of Death, his first novel written along with Christopher Greyson, marks the first time both he and Fox News Books dipped into the world of fiction. It’s a thriller based on some experiences he has been thinking about for over 16 years.
Gowdy said the page-turning thriller is born out of his experiences in the courtroom.
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“I was a federal prosecutor for six years and then was a DA for 10. And so this book has been in my head for about a while. And when I say in my head, I mean I had the foundational crime in my head. I had the characters, some of whom are amalgamations of cops that I worked with in the past. But it was going to stay in my head because I didn’t have the courage to write a fiction book,” he said.
That all changed with a chance meeting with his boss Suzanne Scott discussing a crime that had occurred in South Carolina.
“She knew my background and said, have you ever thought about writing a fiction book? And I said, well, that would cause a medical reaction in every English teacher I ever had,” he said jokingly.
Scott’s answer was, “Just take a chance. Just try,” he said.
And so he did, thanks in part to a deep love of writing.
“I do love to write. It is my favorite thing to do. I wrote, for better or for worse, every closing argument, every opening statement, every speech I ever gave in Congress, every question I ever asked in Congress. They all came from the same pen. And it is not because I thought I was good. It’s just the authenticity,” he explained.
Gowdy said when you’re more authentic when you’re speaking, when you really believe what you’re saying, people connect with your storytelling.
Gowdy said his challenges were writing dialogue with multiple points of view.
“It’s a big leap from nonfiction to fiction, but it never would’ve been taken but for Ms. Scott saying, you should really give it a try,” he said.
“The Color of Death” is a certified page turner, the kind of thriller you curl up with and never want to put down. The characters are richly drawn, the scenes are gritty and real, and the twists and turns leave the reader wanting more. Gowdy says he had so much story to tell that sequels are on the way.
Gowdy said what he really wanted to bring to life was the role the prosecutor plays.
“I have to be the last one in front of the jury, convincing them. In 85% of all burglary cases, there are no fingerprints. So cops and prosecutors know that it’s pretty futile to look for fingerprints at a burglary case. But the jury doesn’t know why you didn’t try,” he said of the process.
Gowdy said he has had tons of conversations with police officers where he says, OK, we got the shell casings in the parking lot, you need to test them for fingerprints.
“And they would look at me and say there are no fingerprints on the shell casing my answer was yes you and I both know that, but the jury does not. And I have to explain that we tried,” he said.
Gowdy said whoever talks to the jury the most is the one who really should be leading the investigation.
“I can’t think of a movie or a miniseries or a TV show that accurately portrayed that relationship, and especially the one with the victims. There is a bond between prosecutors and crime victims that supersedes politics. It supersedes race; it supersedes everything. You are united in grief. And to this day, there are people in my hometown, which is the only town I’ve ever lived in, they still think I’m the DA to this day,” he said.
Gowdy said the grief and darkness he peels back in the telling of the story have never left him from his days as a prosecutor, which he deftly brings to life in the book.
“It never left me. I mean, I tried to get out before it was too late. My mom and my wife sat me down on Mother’s Day of 2009 and said, you’ve got to go do something else. You have to,” he said.
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“I really had no desire to be in Congress. I had never woken up in the morning and thought I want to be a member of the House. I was running away from the courthouse, not towards Congress, but I tried to get out before I had to come hopelessly cynical. But the truth is, I didn’t make it.”
Gowdy said nothing has been announced yet, but there is definitely more than one sequel coming from The Color of Death.