GREAT WHITE

Trouble reliably finds an aging but clever private eye in Helms’ witty mystery novel.

Ex-cop Eamon Gold has a soft spot for losers. Jordy Pankratz is a down-on-his-luck bookkeeper who approaches Eamon for protection; Jordy has borrowed money from a loan shark, and now goons are threatening him (“ol’ Sammy wasn’t averse to paying the band for a little knuckle music to motivate delinquent payers”). After Eamon and his protégé, Sonny Malehala, chase off the thugs, the loan shark, Samuel Brownlee, hires Eamon to find his missing wife, Rhonda, in exchange for letting Jordy pay off his debt unmolested over time. Eamon is soon drawn into the world of Rhonda’s Real Housewives–like friends and their largely criminal mates, and the bodies soon start dropping. Eamon is lured to a cabin belonging to Julia Wanamaker, who had run away with Rhonda, and he makes a startling discovery there. Shortly thereafter, Samuel is arrested for murder, but Eamon doesn’t believe he’s guilty. Eamon also gets hired to assist attorney Wilson Varnadore, the “Great White Shark,” in his defense of Libby Cordelia Hackney, a P.I. suspected of the murder of a missing radio station owner. The more Eamon looks into the two cases, the more suspects he uncovers, some of whom end up dead. Eamon attempts to stay on everyone’s good side as he unravels the complex mysteries. This entertaining fifth entry in Helms’ series features an older and mostly wiser Eamon, who’s pondering his legacy. (His protégé, Sonny, is quite content with his role as a security director at a Hawaiian resort.) In former cop Libby, Eamon and his paramour, Heidi, see a very rough diamond needing some polish. Helms takes an intriguing approach to the narrative, starting in the present, then flashing back to a year earlier, then proceeding slowly back to the present. Given all the affairs, keeping track of everyone’s motives can be difficult, but it’s energizing to try to solve the mysteries along with Eamon.

An engrossing thriller built around a strong central character.