"e;A masterpiece. . . . An unforgettable character . . . who proceeds to take you on a roller-coaster ride through his tawdrily tumultuous life."e; -Chicago TribuneAt the age of fifty-seven living a life riddled with ex-wives, one night stands, and daily diet of Jack Daniels Bad Blake is on his last legs. His ticker, his liver, even his pick-up truck are all giving him trouble. A renowned songwriter and "e;picker"e; who hasn't recorded in five years, Bad now travels the countryside on gigs that take him mostly to motels and bowling alleys. Enter Jean Craddock, a young journalist sent to interview him after a beautiful concert, and a tentative romance blooms. Can Bad stop living the life of a country-western song and tie a rope around his crazy heart?"e;A measure of Thomas Cobb's talent is that he can make Bad Blake's story amusing even as we watch him fall."e; New York Times Book Review"e;[Cobb's] picture of the scraggly underside of Western music is brutally convincing."e; The New Yorker"e;Crazy Heart just might be the finest country-western novel ever written, bar none."e; Houston Post"e;[A] moving, respectful evocation of the world of country music."e; Boston Herald"e;Thomas Cobb's marvelous first novel doesn't just play on your heartstrings, it breaks them."e; San Francisco Examiner"e;A piercing, keenly observed chronicle of modern Americana."e; Los Angeles Times"e;Heartfelt."e; Houston Chronicle"e;A beautiful book. . . . Bad Blake is a man you will not soon forget."e; Washington Times

"A masterpiece.... An unforgettable character... who proceeds to take you on a roller-coaster ride through his tawdrily tumultuous life." - Chicago Tribune
At the age of fifty-seven-living a life riddled with ex-wives, one night stands, and daily diet of Jack Daniels-Bad Blake is on his last legs. His ticker, his liver, even his pick-up truck are all giving him trouble. A renowned songwriter and "picker" who hasn't recorded in five years, Bad now travels the countryside on gigs that take him mostly to motels and bowling alleys. Enter Jean Craddock, a young journalist sent to interview him after a beautiful concert, and a tentative romance blooms. Can Bad stop living the life of a country-western song and tie a rope around his crazy heart?
"A measure of Thomas Cobb's talent is that he can make Bad Blake's story amusing even as we watch him fall." - New York Times Book Review
"[Cobb's] picture of the scraggly underside of Western music is brutally convincing." - The New Yorker
"Crazy Heart just might be the finest country-western novel ever written, bar none." - Houston Post
"[A] moving, respectful evocation of the world of country music." - Boston Herald
"Thomas Cobb's marvelous first novel doesn't just play on your heartstrings, it breaks them." - San Francisco Examiner
"A piercing, keenly observed chronicle of modern Americana." -Los Angeles Times
"Heartfelt." - Houston Chronicle
"A beautiful book.... Bad Blake is a man you will not soon forget." - Washington Times