BIG F*UCKING DEAL

LAWRENCE ALLAN

Big F*cking deal, a Jimmy Cooper mystery is the second in what I hope will be a long series written by Lawrence Allan. The reader is in for a great time, starting with an imaginative and well-executed cover.

This time out, Jimmy, who works for his mom as a private investigator, is assigned a case with all the makings for high risk and high reward. A local billionaire's son has been kidnapped without a trace. There is very little evidence, either circumstantial or direct. As he conducts his investigation, the reader meets the usual suspects: ethically challenged cops, straight-laced FBI agents, and members of the LA crime scene.

Lawrence Allan has a great grasp of what makes a great PI novel, and he shows off these talents admirably. From the gorgeous and manicured streets of the west side of LA to the impoverished East Side, readers are treated to a picture and realistic view of what Los Angeles looks like both to the insider and the observer.

Big f*cking deal by Lawrence. Allan is a great read that can be read as a standalone or, in my opinion, after reading his first novel Big Fat F*ck Up. Here's hoping that Lawrence Allan continues to write the Jimmy Cooper series and that the series and the writer, Alan, become as ubiquitous as Connolly, Kellerman, and others who have left an indelible mark on the LA crime scene.

BIG FAT F__K-UP

LAWRENCE ALLAN

Big Fat F—K -UP, a Jimmy Cooper mystery by New novelist Lawrence Allan, is one great big, fun, and entertaining private investigator novel. Aside from a delightful and twisty plot, Allan moves his characters through the large and ever-changing city of Los Angeles, which brings to mind current great writers like Robert Crais and Michael Connolly.

Jimmy Cooper, a burnt-out former teen movie star, is a private investigator for his demanding mother's white-shoe law firm. Jimmy's first case is to find out why a co-owner of a large beer brewery was killed and why his niece was almost killed in a car wreck above the streets of Los Angeles. The plot is as winding as those streets as the reader takes a thrill ride, meeting unique individuals, ranging from LAPD detectives to burned-out musicians and minor D-list actors. Readers will become familiar with Cooper's quick wit and self-absorption, all of which lead to success but take the reader on a wild goose chase, leaving severe doubt as to whether the case can be solved and whether Cooper is a competent private investigator.

There is good news: Jimmy Cooper will make another appearance, entitled Big F @!king Deal. The Jimmy Cooper PI series shows all the potential of a long-lasting series that will endure well into this decade. Readers can only hope that Jimmy Cooper and his creator, Lawrence Allan, will become as ubiquitous as Elvis Cole, Harry Bosch, and the rest of the superb detectives based in the greater Los Angeles area.

BIG TIME

BEN H. WINTERS

Ben Winters came to the forefront when he wrote the great trilogy The Last Policeman. Since then, he has become even more adept and is one of my go-to writers for mystery, suspense, horror, his scary and early novel Bedbugs. Big Time has science fiction, mystery, thrills, and philosophical questions about life, time, and money. From the outset, one of the characters has been abducted, but why? No clues make the reader curious and rattled with anticipation and unease. The plot carries the reader on a breakneck ride filled with uncanny and peculiar occurrences, leaving the reader wanting to get to the bottom of Big Time, one of Winter's most memorable and fascinating works.

HERBVANA

BRIAN B. DEFOE

Herbvana, by first-time novelist Brian B. DeFoe, reflects a writer with much more experience and ability than almost any first-time novelist. The novel concerns a marijuana shop that had just opened in the state of Washington in 2012 when selling weed became legal and highly regulated. Herbvana is owned by a crooked lawyer, a stoner, and a conniving, attractive woman employee with her agenda as the story opens. The reader quickly discovers that the agent responsible for enforcing regulatory laws has been shaking down the owner of Herbvana for roughly $20,000 a week. In a cash business such as the weed business, $20,000 weekly is just a cost of doing business. However, eventually, the owner and the young woman employee tire of this expense. As the story progresses, the reader is treated to crooked lawyers, corrupt regulatory officials, and a variety of stoners using marijuana daily and perhaps on an hourly basis. The descriptions of the characters and the business are spot on, leaving the impression that Herbvana is little more than a convenience store that happens to sell marijuana.

Herbvana is well written, hangs together nicely, and has a logical beginning, middle, and end, which keeps the pages turning and produces an optimism in the reader that Mr. DeFoe will continue his budding career as a novelist of humor and crime, a mixture proven successful by the likes of Paul Levine, Laurence Shames, Carl Hiaasen, Mike Faricy and others.

VILLAGE IN THE DARK

IRIS YAMASHITA

Village In The Dark by talented two-time mystery and procedural writer Iris Yamashita is just as good and better than her first effort, City Under One Roof. Both occur in a desolate Alaskan village where most live in one building. This makes for a pleasant communal environment but creates loathing, unhealthy curiosity, and even death wishes.

Anchorage, Alaska, detective Cara Kennedy still grieves for her husband and son, who died in a hiking accident. At least she thinks it was an accident with no evidence of foul play until now. During Cara's investigation, she enlists Ellie, whose son overdosed, and Mia, a woman attempting to start over, having been hiding from a group of abusive and frightening men. The three hook up in an attempt to solve their respective problems. Was foul play involved in the disappearance of the detective's family, which drug dealer was responsible for the overdose of Ellie's son, and will Mia start a new life free of abuse? All these questions and more are laid out in an entertaining and enthralling procedural that all mystery and thriller fans need to read.

THE SPLIT

KIT FRICK

The Split by talented and prodigious author Kit Frick once again never fails to disappoint. This time out, we are treated to an engrossing story of two sisters, Jane, the sister you wish you had, and Esme, the person you want to be. The Split is reminiscent of the movie Sliding Doors, where one decision leads to a set of ramifications, and another reveals an entirely different scenario. Esme is in Midtown Manhattan when she calls her sister for a ride home. Jane is pulled toward picking up her sister due to guilt about an ambiguous accident that occurred some time ago. Each chapter reveals different consequences to the decisions that Jane, the good sister, makes as she struggles with her past guilt and demons while feeling emotionally blackmailed by Esme, the sister you might have wished to become had your life turned onto a different path.

CODE CRISIS

JOE PURPURA

Code Crisis by Dr. Joe Purpura is a wildly entertaining novel about Homeland Security and what can go wrong and right in a hospital setting. A patient comes to Doctor Vince Deluca for a routine exam. After the successful operation, while under anesthesia, the patient makes some cryptic remarks and hands the doctor a seemingly nonsensical piece of paper. This message leads to havoc of the worst kind imaginable. Dr. Deluca calls the FBI to learn what the form and contents mean. From there, all hell breaks loose as Homeland Security, the FBI, and other alphabet agencies converge on the small town of Santa Barbara.

Dr. Joe Pupura is a first-time novelist who exhibits the skills of a veteran writer. Readers will root for all his characters and, more importantly, wait anxiously for another entry into this entertaining and well-written potential series.

HOLLYWOOD HUSTLE

JON LINDSTROM

Hollywood Hustle by new author Jon Lindstrom has everything you want in a rough and tumble noir thriller in equally challenging Los Angeles. Winston Greene was once a big-time movie star with a ton of money, but not anymore. Now he has a dilapidated house and only a little more. His prize possession is his granddaughter, whose mother is troubled and not fit to parent. One day, his granddaughter shows up at his house with a thumb drive demanding ransom for Winston's kidnapped daughter. Winstons connects with two friends, a stuntman and a former Los Angeles Police detective. The story unwinds with violence, criminal intent, and mischief, making Hollywood Hustle a terrific read about what can happen in the land of glitz and fame. Readers will anxiously await the next Winston Greene adventure.

THE SECOND GIRL

DAVID SWINSON

I just finished The Second Girl by David Swinson. I am depressed because the second installment of this outstanding and absorbing P.I. novel is not due until the summer of 2017. Think Pelecanos, David Simon’s The Wire, Homicide, and Life On the Street, illustrious and legendary police procedurals, whether on television or in book form.

Our hero is a drug-addicted former Washington, D.C., narcotics detective. The only thing he likes more than Valium, cocaine, and liquor is solving crimes that the cops cannot solve. He does not have to have probable cause to stop somebody, which means that he can do whatever he feels is necessary to find a resolution to the crime. Our P.I. is hired to find a missing girl. Is she a runaway or a kidnapping victim? Who took her and why? It would help if you bought this book on June 7. Then, block out a day or two to travel the dirty, dangerous, and unpredictable streets that surround our nation’s capital. I assure you that you will never feel the same about gangs, kids, and crime.

GRAVES END

J.L. ABRAMO

I was enchanted and enthralled by this outstanding crime novel. But it was much more than a novel about good guys and bad. It was a magic roller coaster ride through Brooklyn and the rest of New York.

The characters are as accurate as life and as complex and memorable. Every page describes people and situations that have or could happen to any of us. The police are fragile and vulnerable, and their families suffer from their devotion to duty. We want the detectives to overcome adversity, make the arrest, and clear the case. But like life, some issues are too difficult to close, and sometimes nobody gets collared.
The bad guys in this gorgeous story are evil and deserve their fate. Their victims are innocents who are in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Make sure that you buy this book. See Brooklyn and its inhabitants like you have never seen them. What a book.

THE NIX

NATHAN HILL

The Nix is one of the best books I have had the privilege to read in the last few years. I had heard great news about it and was not surprised. It lived up to its notice in spades. Nathan Hill is one helluva writer.

A Nix is a ghost, something that follows us until we die. The protagonist in this involving and amusing story is an emotionally stilted, frustrated, lonely, and bright English professor at a small university. His passion is video games and lamentation while dealing with today’s byzantine academic rules and procedures that plague anybody in academia, including this reviewer. When he was a small child, his mother and father deserted him. Twenty-some years later, he has an opportunity to reunite with her. His mother has become infamous for an event that I will not mention.

The Nix is a beautiful story that reminds us of what families are and what we wish they could be. Considering that Halloween is here, The Nix is one ghost that will haunt you long after you have finished this remarkable novel.

WHERE THEY WAIT

SCOTT CARSON

Scott Carson, A.K.A. Michael Koryta, is a multi-talented author who knows how to scare the h**l out of you. With the ubiquity of apps, why not have one that will improve your mental state and outlook? That is what happens in Where They Wait. Nick Bishop tests an app that promises big rewards, increased sleep, and a perfect perspective. What he encounters is far more than what he bargained for. Truths about his life and past emerge in ways unbeknownst and frightening. Where They Wait offers a fresh take on what disturbs us the most—our lives and regrets.

MATTERS OF DOUBT

WARREN C. EASLEY

Matters of Doubt by Warren C. Easley is the first of an eight-book series. It features a straight-ahead, honest, and determined attorney, Cal Claxton, who lives in rural Oregon. Cal's client is a young man whose mother has been murdered. This egregious offense motivated Cal to do what he could to bring the killer to answer for his crime. Taking up the cause of his client offends Cal’s friends and some of his associates. But no matter what, Cal must collect the evidence and solve the murder. We became familiar with Cal's personality and work habits along the way. We also gain a picture of Portland, Oregon, and its problems, typical of a large city in the United States. Matters of Doubt is a stand-alone winner and an outstanding springboard for the author's future work.

THE PLOT

JEAN HANFF KORELITZ

The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz is a strikingly excellent novel that combines the best of literary fiction and commercial readability. With the publication of The Plot, Jean Hanff Korelitz has captured a willing audience that is always on the lookout for a fantastic story told in a gripping and unpredictable manner. The Plot centers on a failed writer who happens to come across a manuscript shown to him by a student. The undeveloped story has potential but remains stillborn until the failed writer decides to resurrect his career. What happens next is the stuff of one of the best novels of this or any other year. Fiction is a window to our souls. The Plot rips open our skin and delivers a red-hot flame that burns until the reader is left gasping for air.

THE DOLLAR-A YEAR DETECTIVE

WILLIAM WELLS

William Wells is a guy I love to read. He authors an involving story full of excellent police procedural jargon. He also includes enough humor to remind me of Paul Levine, SV Date, and even the king of the Florida caper, Carl Hiaasen.

The Dollar-A-Year Detective starts with a couple taking a romantic sail off the coast of Florida. A minute later, they are dead from two headshots from an unknown assailant.

Jack Starkey, our protagonist, is a retired Chicago homicide detective living on his houseboat and running his bar. Occasionally, he is asked to look at a case and lend a hand to the locals. That is precisely what he does in The Dollar-A-Year Detective. We meet your typical scummy politicians and others who populate that weird place called Florida. Why the victims are murdered and by whom is what this entertaining book is about. Throw in an extraordinary police sense of humor, memorable characters, and terrific scenery. You then have a must-read P.I. novel that will keep you up all night, laughing and wondering what happened. And keep in mind the author’s initial entry, Detective Fiction. It's worth the read.

PENDULUM

ADAM HAMDY

Pendulum by Adam Hamdy is just that. The story kept me swinging back and forth, racing along London and New York streets, trying to avoid a nameless and faceless killer who was particularly good at his job. What captured my attention and held it long into the night was an elemental yet frightening question. Who is trying to kill our hero, and why? Along the way, we meet unknowing and undeserving victims from all occupations in this entertaining and wild ride. But are they what they seem? The truth is revealed late in the game, meaning you must race to the end. The ride is wild, bewildering, and fantastic. I loved this book and hope for more by this talented and innovative writer.

FATAL OPTION

CHRIS BEAKEY

This twisty and unpredictable psycho-thriller reminds us how vulnerable we are to doing the wrong thing for the right reasons. The plot is straightforward; a family-oriented person gets into a traffic accident, but the results are far from uncomplicated. The book gains momentum, and the reader must turn the pages to discover what happens to this ordinary family battling far from ordinary events. My advice to you is to not drive in the snow, and if you do, avoid what happens in this involving and irresistible look at something that could happen to all of us.

THE DRY

JANE HARPER

I was unfamiliar with the brilliant writer of the equally excellent mystery, The Dry. Ms. Harper’s writing is piercing while developing fascinating plots and backstories. I read The Dry in two days. The descriptions of Australia rang true, which added authenticity to this mesmerizing, beautifully crafted debut mystery. The characters were mightily conceived and believable. The Dry transported me to a foreign land where anything could happen. Grab this book as soon as possible; you will have no regrets.

WRECKED

JOE IDE

I review a lot of mysteries and thrillers. Many are mediocre, and only a few stand out, especially from first-time writers. Joe Ide has written excellent puzzles, I.Q. and Righteous. Both are captivating. Wrecked is the third of the I.Q. series. Isaiah Quintabe, IQ for short, is a Long Beach, California-based P.I. He earned his rep by solving small and big cases.

In Wrecked, Isaiah is asked to find a missing person, the mother of his putative girlfriend. The action starts from page one and never stops until the novel concludes. I will not reveal much of the plot. Only those humans are capable of horrendous behavior, especially during war. Pictures, videos, and blackmail are all fragrant ingredients in Wrecked, the third entry into what should be a terrific series.

INVISIBLE DEAD

SAM WIEBE

Sam Wiebe is an impressive writer. I loved his first novel, Last of The Independents. As soon as I started it, I wanted him to draft another book. And he just did, writing another moody, atmospheric, grey, and reflective novel, Invisible Dead.

It takes place in Vancouver, B.C., Canada. The plot is initially straightforward. A girl went missing a long time ago. Dave Wakeland, an earnest P.I., wants to discover what happened to the missing girl. Unfortunately, more than a few good and evil people do not want her found. We accompany Dave as he deals with Vancouver’s meanest, deadliest, and scummiest. This is what being a P.I. is like—just hard-nosed reality in all its glory and gloom.

How Dave carries himself propels the reader rapidly through the story. Take a day or two to familiarize yourself with Dave Wakeland, a P.I. who has lived through a lot but can still talk about it. Once you read Invisible Dead, you will cheer and root for another outstanding Dave Wakeland novel. I know I will.