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dantastic's review
3.0
New Orleans detective Mike Shayne is hired by a little old lady to find her son who had enlisted in the army under an assumed name after working in Mexico as a miner for five years. Shayne's trail weaves a serpentine course through a web of lies and deceit, encountering equally dirty politicians on both sides of a mayoral race, a missing soldier, blackmail, unrequited love, and mistaken identity. Can Shayne solve the mysteries, get out alive, and get paid?
I devoured this in one sitting while my car was being worked on. It was a page turner of the highest order. Brett Halliday is a master of misdirection. I'd say almost 75% of the book was red herrings and false leads. While I suspected the old switcheroo had been pulled at some point, I had no idea how complicated things had become.
Mike Shayne seems like an ancestor of sorts of Lawrence Block's Matthew Scudder. He obeys his own code more than the law and is fairly flexible as far as rates go. He took the case initially for fifty bucks and then set about getting a more worthwhile fee during the course of the investigation. I'll be reading more of Mr. Shayne's cases in the future.
While it wasn't my favorite Hard Case, this one is definitely on the worthwhile end of the spectrum. Halliday will keep you guessing until the very end.
I devoured this in one sitting while my car was being worked on. It was a page turner of the highest order. Brett Halliday is a master of misdirection. I'd say almost 75% of the book was red herrings and false leads. While I suspected the old switcheroo had been pulled at some point, I had no idea how complicated things had become.
Mike Shayne seems like an ancestor of sorts of Lawrence Block's Matthew Scudder. He obeys his own code more than the law and is fairly flexible as far as rates go. He took the case initially for fifty bucks and then set about getting a more worthwhile fee during the course of the investigation. I'll be reading more of Mr. Shayne's cases in the future.
While it wasn't my favorite Hard Case, this one is definitely on the worthwhile end of the spectrum. Halliday will keep you guessing until the very end.
bloodravenlib's review
4.0
This was a pleasant discovery. Mike Shayne is a bit more cynical than most, and he certainly makes sure to get paid. But those are not bad traits as he finds out the truth at the end. The story has as scheme to smuggle army deserters into Mexico, something about a silver mine, and murder. These items are certainly a good recipe for a mystery that Mike Shayne slowly unravels. The author does put in a bit misdirection, but if you are an attentive reader you can figure things out as you read along. Then again, as many detective stories, you will find out the real truth at the end, and I have to say, I did enjoy the ending quite a bit. I will certainly keep my eye out for other Shayne mysteries now. Also, the book is a pretty easy read, so if you enjoy hard boiled detective fiction, you will certainly enjoy this one.
katelynncoull's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.5
I bought this book when i thought I was going to be that b*tch that watched film noir and read mysteries. This was not the book that made me that girl.
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