NO WAY TO DIE

Private investigator Danny Logan, driven by loyalty and maybe even love, takes on another band of foreign bad guys.

When last heard from, retired Army tough guy Logan appeared ready to pause the wisecracking and follow his heart, but apparently what happens in Hawaii stays in Hawaii. And now Danny hangs with lovely FBI agent-with-benefits Jennifer at night while still playing verbal games by day with tough/brilliant/beautiful Toni and the rest of the agency crew. Brought in by a mourning wife to investigate what appears to be a straightforward suicide, the firm uncovers contradictions: happy husband or cheating louse? Wealthy, supportive wife or shrew tightening the financial screws? At the heart of the intrigue is cutting-edge technology with the potential to upset worldwide Internet security, and an aggressive foreign company may be trying to obtain by force what $10 million couldn’t buy. As usual, Logan’s tactics alternate between finesse and bull-in-a-china shop bluster, with Toni there to sort things out. Then Toni goes missing, and her life becomes another poker chip in a high-stakes game. Detailed forensic passages engage the curious reader, and fast action keeps things moving.  Small plot discrepancies may exist (why not just steal the technology, initially kept at the inventor’s home, in the first place?) but won’t distract. Readers will enjoy contemporary music references—what is it about that Adele song that puts Toni on edge?—and Logan’s characteristic jeep and guitar campouts under the stars. More is divulged about the firm’s tech guru Kenny with his parade of young girlfriends and the stoic Doc, who appears to figure more centrally in a planned follow-up tale of intrigue.

Steady and even, the newest Danny Logan mystery holds up well and suggests a solid series is in store for those enjoying PI stories with personality.