Brad Smith is compared with Elmore Leonard on the cover of his latest release, Crow's Landing.  Here's what Elmore Leonard said about his own popularity.*

"I think it's based on the fact that my books are entertaining.  It must be that simple.  My readers like the references to what's going on in the world, to television and movies, they feel a rapport with these people.  It might be just the dialogue, that the story moves very, very quickly.  They like it that you can get on an airplane in the east and finish the book before you're in L.A.  Maybe that's it."

~ *Interview with Lawrence Grobel for Playboy magazine.  Published in Endangered Species, Writers Talk About Their Craft, Their Visions, Their Lives, Lawrence Grobel, Da Capo Press, 2001.