I’m pleased and thrilled to report that NAGLER’S SECRET has been named a Distinguished Favorite in the 2026 BIG NYC Book Awards.

The annual contest draws authors from around the world.

Contest information: Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/independentpressaward/

Twitter: @GabbyBookAwards and 

 #2026NYCBBA or #BigBookAward and #GabbyBookAwards

Nagler’s Secret is Book 6 in the multi-award winning Frank Nagler Mystery Series that tell of the investigations and life of Ironton, N.J. Detective Frank Nagler.

This is Frank Nagler at his most vulnerable.

Here’s the story:

In 1994, Ironton, N.J., Detective Frank Nagler should be flying high.

As a rookie cop the year before he solved the city’s worst-ever crime spree: Serial killer Charlie Adams had killed nine women until Nagler stopped him.

Nagler was a hero. People stopped him on the street to thank him.

But beneath the façade of joy, Nagler carried a secret, and that secret surfaced during a police raid on a house known for drugs and child sex.

A terrible case.

A terrible case that lingered.

In 2020, reporter Jimmy Dawson looked at his notes from that case and asked why it hadn’t been solved.

Or had it?

Did it even exist?

A couple reviews:

There are very few books that have the power to captivate readers from the first page itself. Nagler’s Secret is one such book. The novel skillfully moves between past and present, slowly reconstructing the truth behind a horrifying case tied to missing girls, hidden networks, and institutional silence. The book is written in such a way that readers will feel like investigators piecing together clues alongside reporter Jimmy Dawson.
Daigle focuses on the psychological damage left behind by trauma and betrayal. The characters feel authentic because they are flawed, conflicted, and haunted by choices they made years earlier. The story explores how secrets can linger for decades and continue to shape the lives of everyone involved.

Nagler’s Secret is a gripping addition to Michael Stephen Daigle’s beloved mystery series, and possibly the strongest entry to date. The story weaves across multiple decades with confidence and precision, slowly unraveling a cold case involving missing children that has haunted Detective Frank Nagler for years.
Daigle’s greatest strength is atmosphere. The fictional town of Ironton, New Jersey is economically battered and full of quiet sorrow. It feels achingly real, and Nagler fits it perfectly: a detective shaped by loss who refuses to stop searching for the truth. The pacing is excellent, the dialogue sharp, and the emotional stakes genuinely moving.
Whether you’re a longtime fan of the series or picking it up for the first time, Nagler’s Secret delivers everything you could want from a crime novel—mystery, heart, and a detective worth rooting for. Don’t miss it.

Nagler’s Secret: A Frank Nagler Mystery: Daigle, Michael Stephen: 9798992060928: Amazon.com: Books

https://myaccount.ingramspark.com/Titles/TitleDetails/ACS106721820

Nagler’s Secret: A Frank Nagler Mystery by Michael Stephen Daigle | Goodreads