CITY IN RUINS

DON WINSLOW

Mr. Winslow generously sent me five of his backlisted books a long time ago. After reading one whose title I now forget, I wrote," I wish I could quit teaching and read every one of Mr. Winslow's novels." I feel the same way, only more vehemently. Starting with Isle Of Joy and ending with City In Ruins, the last entry in the Danny Ryan trilogy. No other writer comes close to Mr. Winslow's ability to assemble a story and people it with characters that will be long remembered after those reading it have died.

As to the book itself, hang on. It is the last of an incredible crime tale that starts in Rhode Island, relocates to Los Angeles, and ends in Las Vegas, the land of drugs, money, women, sex, and violence. City in Ruins is equal to every crime novel, including Puzo's Godfather and the underrated Fools Die.

Don Winslow needs no review from me. He is like my boyhood heroes: Sandy Koufax, Magic Johnson, and Wayne Gretzky. All of them were the best at what they did, and knowing that is an experience I will remember until I die.

THE STARS TURNED INSIDE OUT

NOVA JACOBS

Author Nova Jacobs's The Stars Turned Inside Out combines two unlikely elements, hard-core physics, and good old-fashioned plotting, to produce a fascinating novel. The story occurs within CERN, The European Organization for Nuclear Research. Scientists use nuclear colliders and other innovative equipment to study the primary constituents of matter—the fundamental particles.

The body of a newly arrived scientist is found dead, apparently irradiated by the equipment dedicated to accomplishing the goals of the project. However, little or no evidence has been discovered, including video surveillance data that is surprisingly substandard. CERN hires an investigator to find out how and why the novice employee died. The detective may have less than obvious motives, which are a driving force behind her inquiry. The Stars Turned Inside Out is a captivating novel offering a physics tutorial along with an entertaining and engaging mystery.

KILLERS ON THE DOORSTEP

TOM TURNER

Killers on the Doorstep by veteran author Tom Turner is another outstanding crime caper set in Palm Beach. Turner focuses this outing on a reunion between a well-to-do brother and his step-and-half brothers, who are mobbed up in Providence, Rhode Island. What results are chaos, violence, and, surprisingly, family emotions.

Reed Barton runs and owns a large financial firm called Barton Resources based in West Palm Beach. He has done quite well for himself, so well that he is suffering the typical middle-aged malaise. That is until he is visited by his two brothers who are mobbed up in Providence, Rhode Island, conveniently in the waste disposal business, as well as in the fishing business, fold in a series of minor crimes, as well as larger ones, including kidnapping, attempted rape, and murder. However, the writer, Turner, accomplishes this with panache. Even a dollop of humor reminds the reader of Carl Hiaasen, Paul Levine, Laurence Shames, and others, too numerous to mention. Killers on the Doorstep is an entertaining read that will transport readers to the wealthy areas of Palm Beach and the less desirable. Accordingly, the reader will meet barflies' hangers-on and people with ill intent.

Tom Turner certainly is the master of the Florida-based crime/comedic novel. Readers would be advised to check out Turner's extensive list of books, including the ever-popular Palm Beach series and others in his vast and outstanding portfolio.

Cape Rage (A Danny Barrett Novel Book 2

RON CORBETT

Cape Rage, by Ron Corbett (Book Two of A Danny Barrett Novel), is a splendid novel that combines family gravitas, high emotion, crime, and its unavoidable consequences. Danny Barrett is an independent contractor working for the F.B.I. in an isolated part of the Pacific Northwest. The Danby family conducts organized crime with impunity, resulting in death and destruction. The local police and state authorities are powerless.

A bank robbery results in the near-death of one of the Danby clan, and the wounded husband, Henry Carter, is blind with psychotic anger and all too willing to kill anybody who stands in his way. The result is a fascinating game of cat and mouse, violence, and unpredictability that entangles the reader emotionally, producing tension and a great reading experience.

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.