THE JUDGE

A dogged detective tracks a slick extortionist in the City on a Hill.

Boston private eye Andy Roark rings in New Year’s Day 1986 with a complex case brought to him by veteran judge Ambrose Messer and his clerk, Angela Estrella, at the legendary Jacob Wirth restaurant. While he was attending a legal conference in Miami, the long-married judge had a fling with the much younger Lee Raymond, an art dealer who’s now added blackmailing to his resume. Though the man is fairly elusive, it doesn’t take long for Andy to uncover his felonious past and a string of aliases. Andy’s fifth mystery, another nostalgic paean to Beantown, follows a classic private eye template, with gritty prose, lively characters, and deep local color. It’s no surprise when Andy enters into an affair with the alluring Angela. A Vietnam vet, he’s regularly haunted by vivid flashbacks of his grim service in that unwinnable war. The case takes a dark turn when, in the middle of his search for Raymond, Andy’s attacked in a rundown apartment building by a burly, bat-wielding thug whom he kills in self-defense. The incident strains Andy’s relationship with flinty police sergeant Billy Devaney, a colleague from his years on the force. Other series regulars who make cameo appearances include Andy’s lawyer buddy Terry McVicker and tough-as-nails FBI agent Brenda Watts. The road to Raymond leads through shady lawyer Johnny O’Day, who’s nothing but deadly trouble.

A smooth, atmospheric mystery with a shamus you’ll root for.