The Other Side of Good
Revised & Republished – June 2025
When reputed criminal, Theo Jackson, proposes a significant donation to the city for a new youth center, the mayor sends police officer Denton Jones to negotiate the terms.
Theo and Denton were once friends from the same Cincinnati tenement before taking different career paths. Denton’s efforts on behalf of the city inexplicably make him a target for a corrupt city official, but a dishonest bureaucrat is the least of the city’s problems. Theo uncovers evidence that an international criminal organization has set up shop in the city to facilitate human trafficking.
Repulsed by such a crime, Theo enlists an unlikely coalition of clergy, local and federal law enforcement, and criminals to try to stop it.
Author, E. A. Coe drags readers to the uncomfortable gray areas of life where the wrong thing sometimes seems a better choice than the right thing; where a little bad turns into almost good; and where dark white and light black become the same color.
Why You Might Enjoy This Story…
The Other Side of Good was my first crime thriller, and it had a false start out of the gate when my wife didn’t like the first several chapters. She did like the initial chapters of a different book I was working on, This Time, so I set the manuscript for The Other Side of Good aside for a year.
During the period in which I finished This Time, a friend recommended I read a non-fiction book co-written by James Patterson, John Connolly, and Tim Malloy entitled Filthy Rich. This, of course, is the book about Jeffrey Epstein—written before the man ever went to prison. The narrative shocked me—and gave me a new anchor for the pyramid of criminal acts: Human Trafficking. I had no idea the crime existed at the level it does in the United States.
After reading several other nonfiction books on the subject, I decided that the horrific details of this crime would not make comfortable entertainment reading, but I vowed to make readers aware of the crime’s existence in our society. Discovery of it also gave me an outlet to allow the original outlaw planned for The Other Side of Good to adapt redeeming factors.
In this book, Denton Jones, first introduced in my books as the charismatic relief pitcher, “Ten Ton” in Full Count, has grown up and now acts as a Commander in one of Cincinnati’s police divisions. Readers must determine whether his old friend from the tenements, drug distributor Theo Jackson, is an adversary or an ally.
While I hope the book’s action propels readers through exciting chapters, I suspect it might also force them to think about their own boundaries for what constitutes good and what constitutes bad.
E. A. Coe
What Reviewers Are Saying
“… raises a profound and existential question we’ve all pondered at some point: is it possible to be both ‘good’ and ‘bad,’ or is it one or the other? This captivating police thriller explores the idea that the kind of person one is may not be so black and white and takes readers on an exciting and thought-provoking journey of the gray area in between right and wrong.”
★★★★★
Literary Titan
“… a masterpiece… filled with action, drama, and excitement. The story gives the reader a new perspective on what is right or wrong, good or bad. Coe’s writing style is fast-paced and smooth flowing from beginning to end.”
★★★★★
Natalie Soine for Readers’ Favorite
“Dude! Your story is a TV show in the making.”
★★★★★
Outstanding Creators Award Review
Readers Are Saying
“…out of the chute with a jolt and a spectacular ride around the arena of noir fiction”
★★★★★
Dana Hayward
Award-winning author of Entropy
“Intriguing, realistic, and ultimately beautiful, this is a book that will stick with you for the long haul.”
★★★★★
Katherine Turner
Verified Purchase Amazon customer
“Moral social codes, the intricacies of friendship, the horror of man’s inhumanity to man……….wrap it up!!”
★★★★★
Mary Gearing
Verified Purchase Amazon customer