David Grant Urban is the author of the literary noir thriller A Line Intersected (2017) and the critically acclaimed road novel A Road Wanting Wear (2023).
His work explores the darker corners of the human heart, the redemptive power of landscape, and the complicated bonds between men. Urban’s fiction has been honored with a Firebird Award for Literary Fiction, finalist placements in the Santa Fe Writers Project Literary Awards, and multiple national book festival recognitions.
A former resident of San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter, he now lives with his wife in East Tennessee, where he continues to write stories that refuse easy answers.kstore,
Each orb with flame and embers the Devil seared; above the screams he spoke thus: Malign me not, blind man, for I have made you see.
-Epigraph for “A Line Intersected”, 2017
In the heart of San Diego’s vibrant Gaslamp Quarter, a chance collision unleashes a nightmare of abduction, assault, and murder that shatters Michael Collwood’s perfect life, plunging him into a vengeful quest for justice against ruthless killers. When a midnight plane crash in the remote desert hands him millions in cartel cash and deadly secrets, Michael must navigate a web of corruption, undercover agents, and betrayal to reclaim his soul—or die trying. A Line Intersected is a pulse-pounding thriller where one man’s descent into darkness becomes his path to explosive redemption.
Review Excerpts
“David Urban is a dark poet. With seductive grace and powerful prose, A Line Intersected transforms the postcard vistas of San Diego into a barren landscape of murder and betrayal. I suggest you start reading Intersected early in the day, because you won’t be able to sleep until you’ve finished this rollercoaster of a novel.” – Tim Maleeny, bestselling author of Stealing the Dragon and JUMP
“David Grant Urban writes with grace and his prose offers the precision that readers long for when they read crime and investigation novels. The protagonist is a deeply wounded man and his quest for revenge comes across just so naturally to readers.” -Romuald Dzemo, Readers’ Favorite
“Great plot, great character development, skilled writing – this book has all of that…I’m ready to nominate this one for an Edgar Award.” – Don Houts, MenReadingBooks.com
“A dark story in many ways and utterly gripping…haunting, sad, a bit depressing, this is not a light read. It’s a story of revenge; of murder…very cleverly plotted.”-Wishing Shelf Awards
A blind man halted at a junction and compared by feel the two roads intersecting there. He thought, “The road well-worn and deeply rutted is surely the path of many. Therefore, I must choose the other, for the road wanting wear eases my steps and speeds my way.”
-Epigraph for “A Road Wanting Wear“, a novel by David Grant Urban. Now available at any bookstore, Barnes and Noble, and Amazon.
A Road Wanting Wear is a gripping literary road novel that follows Jordan Wryte and his younger brother Steven as they join two friends for a raw, sun-scorched motorcycle journey across the American Southwest. What begins as a carefree summer escape—poker games, desert bars, towering canyons, and the open throttle of freedom—quickly deepens into a profound meditation on brotherhood, youth, and the fragile line between adventure and tragedy.
Narrated with hard-won hindsight by Jordan years later, the story captures the fierce bonds of male friendship, the seductive pull of the road, and the quiet weight of choices that can never be undone. Against the stark beauty of Death Valley, Tombstone, and the high Sierra, the four riders confront their pasts, test their loyalties, and discover how quickly the arc of life can bend toward loss.
Equal parts gritty motorcycle tale, coming-of-age odyssey, and elegy for innocence, A Road Wanting Wear explores the stories we tell ourselves about the ones we love—and the ones we lose. A powerful, cinematic novel that lingers long after the final mile.
Perfect for fans of Cormac McCarthy, Denis Johnson, and classic road literature.
“Quite masterful…” Kirkus Reviews
“A gritty and realistic piece of literary fiction” K.C. Finn, Readers’ Favorites
“Highly recommended” The Wishing Shelf
“Reminiscent of Jack Kerouac’s On The Road, Urban’s A Road Wanting Wear takes the reader on a whirlwind tour of the Southwest as seen through the lens of four young men in search of themselves. Joni Marie Iraci, bestselling author.
Awards:
A LINE INTERSECTED:
-2018 IAN Book of the Year Award Finalist
-2018 American Fiction Awards Finalist
-2018 Readers Favorite Finalist
–2018 Florida Book Festival Runner Up
-2018 Wishing Shelf Awards Finalist
-2018 Hollywood Book Festival Honorable Mention
-2018 Beach Book Festival Honorable Mention
–2018 New England Book Festival Honorable Mention
-2018 London Book Festival Honorable Mention
A ROAD WANTING WEAR:
2023 Firebird Award, First Place Literary Fiction
Finalist for the 2023 Santa Fe Writers Project Literary Awards
David Grant Urban is on Goodreads.
Contact Dave at: Dave(at)davidgranturban.com
David Grant Urban was featured at the 2018 San Diego Book festival sponsored by the San Diego Union Tribune, along with best-selling authors Earl Javorsky and Caitlin Rother.
From the author: Thank you for visiting. I’m not a commercial writer chasing trends or formulas — I write the stories that haunt me, the ones that try to make sense of beauty and brutality, love and loss, and the long roads in between.
Some readers delight in the layered meanings and moral ambiguity; others find the ride tougher than expected. Both reactions are welcome. Literature should challenge as well as entertain.
If my books stay with you — if they make you think or feel something deeply — then I’ve done what I set out to do. I’m grateful to every reader who still believes in thoughtful fiction.
— David Grant Urban