Dark & Twisted: Dead Flowers by Duane Swierczynski & Andrea Mutti

Synopsis: “LANEY GENNAWAY takes a true crime tour to get to know her new town. The location: the notorious Aztec Hotel, built during Prohibition to cater to gamblers, drinkers, and sexual libertines. There she meets an elderly man named PRESTON BAILEY, who is friendly but clearly lonely.

The tour is focused on a famous unsolved case from 1949—the so-called “FLOWER ARRANGER” who mixed and matched the body parts of his three victims (Violet, Rose, and Lily) at the Aztec Hotel before vanishing into thin air. The husband-and-wife tour guides claim to have finally discovered the Flower Arranger’s identity and promise to lay out their case over the three-hour tour, ending with the big reveal.

Laney is fascinated as the lurid details of case unfold, but quickly realizes that her new friend Preston has a personal connection to the murders: his older sister was LILY BAILEY, the third victim. As the tour begins to spiral out of control, Laney realizes someone on the tour is determined to stop the revelation of the Flower Arranger’s real name. But why?”

Dead Flowers by Duane Swierczynski and Andrea Mutti is a part of John Carpenter’s Dark & Twisted line from Storm King comics. It came out in Feb 2026.

Years ago, when my kids were little, we did a night time walking ghost tour in Gettysburg. I won't sit here and tell you that we saw some walking embodiment of a Civil War solider but it was a moody, atmospheric, and fun experience. Even if only because walking the streets of a town after everything is closed leaves an impression. The folks that led the tour were great. Whether they were true believers or just good at performing a job I couldn't say but they relayed some great stories and pointed out artillery weapon pock marks on the sides of buildings that are still around to this day.

I know the writer Duane Swierczynski a little bit. When my wife and I had lunch with him years ago in Philly he regaled us with stories about the area. Since moving to the west coast Duane has posted on socials and written about the L.A. area and its rich history of writers and connections to Hollywood. 

It also makes him the perfect person for this type of story because it intersects with so many of his interests and strengths as a writer.  The setting and location, the setup. The EC Comics feel. The mix of crime and horror. If there is history behind a place that many may walk by and never consider, Duane will consider it. 

He would have had a blast during that ghost tour.

Dead Flowers is fast paced and a lot of fun. Make sure you check it out (and his novels too damn it!)

Positive/recommended

Dead Flowers is widely available in print and digital. I read it using Hoopla