A thrilling addition to an old but still vital literary genre.
In this hard-boiled crime novel, a California detective tries to connect the murder of a drug cartel enforcer with the killing of an entire family.
Frank Pinson’s life is an unholy mess—he’s an alcoholic; his wife of 25 years, Miranda, recently killed herself; and he’s estranged from his two kids. Nevertheless, he’s a homicide detective in San Diego, and so when someone is murdered, he shows up for work. Frank and his partner, Slade “Skinny” Ryerson, catch a gruesome case—a man is found stuffed into an oil barrel, shot, and mutilated. They discover his name is Enrico Frederico Pablo Castaneda, and, judging by the tattoo on his neck, he was part of a drug cartel. The young man who found him, Turner Malcolm, volunteers some apparently irrelevant information—he’s heard about a family that was murdered and buried, and his tip turns out to be solid. Mark Jacoby, a real estate developer, and his wife and daughter disappeared. Frank and Slade locate them—dead and interred—and are convinced their murders are connected to Castaneda’s. Phillips constructs a complex but grippingly lurid tale that artfully follows the ligature that binds the killing of a cartel henchman to a grander political conspiracy. In many ways, the book is the formulaic expression of a very specific literary genre—Pinson is a cynical and emotionally distraught man who pours the waning energy and decency he has left into his ghastly job. In fact, the author’s prose is so conspicuously evocative of this literary type it often seems like intentional self-parody: “Plenty of beauty out here in the devil’s playground. But that’s a twisted hell, too. Because every second somebody’s got to die.” Nonetheless, this remains an intelligently conceived and executed crime drama, and what it lacks in originality, it compensates for with a captivating story and well-drawn characters.
A thrilling addition to an old but still vital literary genre.Pub Date: July 15, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-73709-781-5
Page Count: 274
Publisher: All Due Respect
Review Posted Online: July 9, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Fairies flutter throughout the first in this by-the-book series.
When the owner of a nearby shop is killed in Courtney Kelly's fairy garden store, she must join forces with her fairy friend to solve the crime.
Courtney, the proprietor of the Open Your Imagination fairy garden store, doesn’t just believe that fairies are real; she has proof to share. Her store is home to Fiona, a mischievous fairy who's in a sort of remedial fairy-in-training program to get her adult wings. Apparently her propensity for pranks in fairy school has obliged her to demonstrate to the queen fairy that she’s serious about her do-gooding duties. When Courtney becomes a suspect in the murder of Mick Watkins, the owner of the Wizard of Paws grooming salon, it seems like the perfect time for Fiona to give Courtney an assist that the queen fairy will notice. If Courtney’s innocent, though, who’s to blame? When Courtney and Fiona begin to investigate, they find many too many suspects, from Mick’s wife, Emily, who’s angry about his recent affair, to Mick and Courtney’s landlord, who wanted Mick’s business out. In this old-fashioned cozy, the whos and whys won’t be a surprise. Nor will the 25 pages of appended recipes, which complement the fairy focus of the story with some serious calories.
Fairies flutter throughout the first in this by-the-book series.Pub Date: June 30, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4967-2634-6
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Kensington
Review Posted Online: April 12, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2020
Irish charm, plenty of suspects, and some strange twists make for a winning combination.
A much-delayed honeymoon to the seacoast turns into a murder hunt.
Garda Siobhán O’Sullivan and her husband, Detective Sergeant Macdara Flannery, have escaped the heat in their hometown by traveling to coastal Lahinch, taking along Siobhán’s five siblings. Upon arrival they check out two chip shops, Mr. Chips and Mrs. Chips, which are across the street from each other, and learn that Mr. Chips’ banner and mural have just been vandalized. The dueling owners went through a nasty divorce after Mr. Chips’ affair with Mrs. Chips’ best friend, so it seems likely that his ex-wife was the vandal. The line of people waiting outside Mrs. Chips, which should have been open by now but isn’t, includes a restaurant critic, a fish supplier, a cooking oil supplier, and a man who’s come to install a new vent hood. Because they can’t get into the shop, Macdara calls local handyman John Healy, who owns the inn where the family is staying. Once inside, they find Mrs. Chips dead. Although she appears to have fallen from a ladder, Siobhán has a hunch that she was murdered. The local Gardai arrive, headed by Detective Sergeant Liam Healy, the innkeeper’s grandson, who wants to believe Mrs. Chips’ death is an accident but is willing to consider murder. Macdara just wants to be a man of leisure, but Siobhán, who can never let a puzzle go unsolved, starts asking questions while her family members enjoy themselves and pursue new romantic attachments. Mrs. Chips had plenty of enemies, but when the next to die is John Healy, Siobhán and Macdara realize this case will be more complicated than they thought.
Irish charm, plenty of suspects, and some strange twists make for a winning combination.Pub Date: Feb. 20, 2024
ISBN: 9781496744449
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Kensington
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2023
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