JUST DIE

In Cervarich’s thriller, a private detective returns to his hometown to help care for his ailing father and gets swept up in a murder investigation.

Charlie Foxhawk Carter hasn’t been back to Richmond, Virginia, in decades, not since his father asked him to “cover up certain undercover operations that were ongoing and were shady, if not illegal” concerning a murder that Charlie was investigating. But when his mother calls to say she needs him, he doesn’t hesitate to return, and he finds his father a significantly diminished figure. While he’s in town, a series of so-called mercy killings occur—most of the victims are elderly women who have been poisoned. The police have arrested Three Carleton, and Charlie’s friend Chip has been engaged as his defense attorney. Three, after a severe car accident in his youth, was left “a seeming idiot with moments of brilliance”; he’s still living with his parents, and neither Chip nor Charlie believes he’s the real culprit. The narrative occasionally switches to the perspective of Sonny Pickett, a businessman who seems to be “the epitome of Southern rectitude and tradition” but is revealed early on to be the real murderer. While the shift provides an intriguing slant to the cat-and-mouse aspect of the story, Sonny is so calculating and narcissistic that he registers as a caricature of a villain rather than a realistic character. And while Charlie seems to be a competent detective, in this case, he operates by interfering directly with evidence in a way that would likely get him in legal trouble. A romantic subplot involving Charlie’s high school sweetheart provides some additional intrigue, and the novel is appealingly fast-paced. Numerous full-page collages featuring Richmond’s scenery appear throughout the book, which, after the initial few spreads, become repetitive and seem to mostly function as shortcuts that allow the author to avoid describing the setting in prose. A dramatic but protracted chase scene at the end reveals secrets not only about the murders, but also about Charlie’s father and his murky past.

A compelling mystery with an overreliance on cliched character types.