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Dirty Martini by J.A. Konrath

Publisher: Hyperion  ISBN-10: 1401302793

Reviewed by Dana King, New Mystery Reader

It should be difficult for a conscientious reviewer to pan a book by an established writer with a successful series, especially when the book in question meets with high acclaim elsewhere. So it’s entirely possible that I’ve missed the boat completely and fallen off the pier regarding J.A. Konrath’s latest Jack Daniels mystery, Dirty Martini.

This installment has Jack tracking a serial killer/mass murderer who is extorting two million dollars from Chicago. Jack is called in by the new female superintendent because her poll numbers are good: public approval of her is 83%. And so begin the problems.

All novels require a suspension of disbelief. We know this didn’t happen, but, so long as we get an entertaining read, we’re willing to pretend. Up to a point. There’s the rub for Dirty Martini. The point past which all disbelief must be suspended was back a ways.

Name a cop in the town or city where you live, excepting the chief, or someone known by you personally. If you can, there’s probably something wrong with him, or he wouldn’t be on the news for you to become familiar with him. To believe 83% of Chicagoans approve of a police lieutenant is asking a lot.

Daniels is summoned to see the superintendent just as her boyfriend proposes. She departs without giving an answer, leaving him alone to eat the dinner he prepared with food contaminated by The Chemist, the previously mentioned killer. This puts him in a coma, during which time Jack has repeated lustful feelings for a federal officer. Ick.

Her partner’s request for a transfer out of Homicide is granted overnight, in the middle of what would have been the biggest heater case in Chicago history. Jack comes to work to find some twenty-something Gen X-er with her feet on Jack’s desk, back talking and generally disrespecting a senior officer.

When Jack can’t sleep because of the investigation and her fiancé’s coma, she cleans the house instead of going over the case. She finds a letter that her absent mother didn’t expect Jack to open until after Mom was dead, telling Jack the father she thought died when she was little is alive and well. Jack later takes a break from the investigation to seek Dad out.

The book is filled with death-defying escapes, punctuated with humor at times Arnold Schwarzenegger wouldn’t even think to crack wise. The timing of the humor diminishes the tension, and the high stakes makes the humor sound forced. Jack’s partner shifts from lying in a pool of his own blood to swooping down in a police helicopter to save her in the matter of a few pages. And The Chemist knows how to create every toxin known to man, as well as twenty tons of homemade explosive, booby traps the Viet Cong would never have thought of, and is a master of telephonic subterfuge the NSA would do well to hire.

There’s more, but that’s already way too much. The shame of it is, Konrath can write. Dirty Martini is filled with the kind of easy reading that comes only from hard work and talent. The book is ultimately brought down because it reads as though it was cobbled together by a room full of marketing types brainstorming what sells. Janet Evanovich’s quirky humor is popular. John Sandford’s sold a boatload of high body count books. Marry them up. The love child of Stephanie Plum and Lucas Davenport has to sell, doesn’t it?

And it will. In the interest of fairness, I’ll point out that eighteen Amazon.com reviewers gave Dirty Martini an average of five stars. That’s nothing to sneeze at. They obviously saw something I missed, or missed something I saw. But after a while, well-written or not, Konrath asks the reader to believe too much, too often. Dirty Martini reads like the novelization of an action movie, without taking into account that a movie can move too fast to allow the audience to really think about what’s happening.

The Candidate by Susan Wales and Robin Shope

Publisher:  Fleming H. Revell  ISBN:  978-0-8007-3112-0

Reviewed by Anne K. Edwards, New Mystery Reader

A fun read for the romantic! Talented authors Susan Wales and Robin Shope combine their creative abilities to bring to life the inhabitants of the small town where Jill Lewis has returned to run the local newspaper.  She is now its proud owner.

Jill needs time to think also about the two men in her life, one a politician and another in law enforcement.  Which one will she choose or will it be neither? 

As Jill settles in as owner of the newspaper, she is drawn to researching certain historical events of the town and becomes involved in a murder.  Will she also be a victim because of what she discovers?

And when will she have time for her newspaper when her life takes a sudden turn. As the two stories unwind, Jill must find a way to balance both halves of her life.

Full of clever twists and turns, lots of red herrings for us to follow in the mystery Jill uncovers, and excitement and intrigue will keep you reading.  This is a very well put together story that any reader will find a pleasant way to spend some time.  I'm pleased to recommend this well told tale as a fun read that will leave you very satisfied with the outcome.  Enjoy.  I did.

A Beautiful Blue Death by Charles Finch

Publisher:  St. Martin's Minotaur  ISBN:  13:  978-0-312-35977-5

Reviewed by Anne K. Edwards, New Mystery Reader

Attention fans of historic mysteries.  If you enjoy tales similar to the style of Sherlock Holmes, you will enjoy A Beautiful Blue Death. 

Talented author Charles Finch opens the door and invites us to step into the investigation conducted by amateur detective Charles Lenos, a member of the upper crust of London's Victorian era.

The former servant of a friend of Lenox's is found dead in her room in the home of a member of the aristocracy and a man who holds a high place in the government.  There is doubt as to the cause of her death or the how of it. Is it suicide or not? Why would a girl with high hopes for her future take her own life?

Additional mysteries and reluctant witnesses complicate the investigation and frustrate Lenox no end.  Will he ever resolve the matter without help?

I'm pleased to recommend this book as a fun read that offers something new in way of plot and characters.  The setting is so well drawn, you'll feel as if you've visited the era.  Enjoy.  I sure did.

Death in the Truffle Wood by Pierre Magnan

Publisher:  Thomas Dunne Books  ISBN:  13:  978-0-312-36666-7

Reviewed by Anne K. Edwards, New Mystery Reader

An easy-paced tale with lots of local color and flavor, a story where you'll meet a variety of interesting and intriguing characters, including a truffle-hunting pig who helps solve a crime. This is a book that will please the reader who likes to venture into mysteries based in other countries.

No matter where we go, people are basically the same the world over--the desire for a safe home, enough to eat and a decent income.  It is this that takes Alyre Morelon and his sow, Roseline, out to hunt truffles--this plus the desire to please his wife.  On the last trips, Roseline has acted strange and run off and made a lot of noise and this worries Alyre.  What is going on with her?

Strange things are happening in the village of Banon.  Hippies are disappearing for no reason, a strange man stops at a small hotel and begins a search for two of the missing.  What will he find?

Talented author Pierre Magnan introduces the reader to a set of lifelike characters you can believe do exist. His descriptive abilities and understanding of human nature bring the tale to life and you'll come to believe this could have happened.  Along with a well-plotted tale, you'll come away with knowledge of truffles, the hunting of them and just what they are.

A fun read well worth the time.  Guaranteed to please the reader who enjoys variety, whether mystery or a wider selection of reading material.  Enjoy.  I certainly did.

Eye of the Beholder by David Ellis

Publisher: Putnam Adult  ISBN-10: 0399154337

Reviewed by Stephanie Padilla, New Mystery Readre

Private attorney Paul Riley has built a lucrative career out of his conviction of a deranged serial killer as a prosecutor 15 years previously.  And while not a difficult case, the evidence of the culprit's guilt in the killing of several young women almost handed to him on a silver platter; it was one that made his name and reputation worth a pound of gold as a lawyer.  But now, years later, women are being killed again in much the same way, leaving Paul to question if he convicted the wrong man, or is there a copycat on the loose?

While Ellis, one of the better authors of legal thrillers out there, has created a suspenseful tale that should please his many fans, he's also created a tale that may leave some readers a bit confused and dissatisfied.  Ellis provides a mostly cunningly and intelligently conceived plot, but it does take a bit of work to keep up with some of the more convoluted twists that occur on the road to the final denouement. 

The more optimistic reader might call this a story of redemption - the triumph of justice and humanity over money, fame, and glory; however, the time it takes for these themes to be fully realized might come a bit too late for those who are unable to swallow the questionable motives and reasoning that characterize the majority of the read.  Still, it's a hard book to put down once you start, making it a read that most likely will be enjoyed, ambiguous or not.

Reviewed by Anne K. Edwards, New Mystery Reader 

If you like the Orient as a setting for adventure, mystery and thrills, you will enjoy A Nail Through the Heart and the family that travel writer, Poke Rafferty is trying to create with people that society pretends doesn't exist. Except for Poke, most of the people he knows in Bangkok struggle to survive by selling their bodies, anyone from near babies to girls working in bars or on the streets where a booming sex trade lures men who can pay for anything they want.

Poke is asked by a visiting woman to find her uncle who seems to have disappeared.  Because he wants to build favors as credits with a police friend, he takes on the job. His investigation leads him to the home of a wealthy recluse who is greatly feared and into the darker side of human nature. The recluse hires him to retrieve stolen property.  He must accept this job or else. 

Talented author Timothy Hallinan introduces the reader to a subject little known or understood in a land where children and people are for sale for the pleasure of foreigners.  Into this world the seeker of pleasure should beware of whom they trust. 

I'm pleased to recommend this well-told tale with its deep understanding of human nature.  This is the type of story that opens one's eyes to the need for laws in the world to protect the vulnerable while weaving several plots together to hold the reader's attention from beginning to end.  Like me, you'll be looking for other books by this imaginative author.  Enjoy.  I sure did.

New Mystery Reader Magazine  editor@newmysteryreader.com