DP54Cover - Deadly Pleasures

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Deadly Pleasures
DEADL DEADLY DEADL Y PLEASURES
PLEASURES
by by George George Easter
Easter
CHASING DARKNESS by Robert Crais (Simon &
Schuster, $25.95, July, 2008). Rating: A The
first chapter really grabbed me. It depicts two
policemen who are in charge of getting everyone in a
certain neighborhood to temporarily move out because of
a near-by wildfire. One policeman gets no response at one
door and the next door neighbor’s information about the
man who lives there gives him cause for concern, so he
finds a way to get inside and when he does, he discovers an
apparent suicide. That’s bad enough, but as he looks a bit
closer, he peruses the scrapbook on the suicide’s lap. It
contains photos of the last moments of seven female
murder victims. Seven victims in seven years and the
police never connected the murders as the work of one
serial killer. The police investigation of the murder of
Victim #4 did result in a suspect (the deceased suicide), but
he was cleared by the clever detective work of one Elvis
Cole. Is it possible that Elvis made a mistake, which
resulted in the deaths of three more victims?
This discovery sets off a firestorm of a different
kind – police activity. But are they trying to close the cases
too rapidly for their own purposes. Elvis Cole gets caught
in the middle of all this and has to try to come up with a
scenario that fits all of the discordant facts.
This is the best Robert Crais novel since LA
REQUIEM, my personal favorite. Clever detection with
a number of surprises along the way make the fast-paced
CHASING DARKNESS a winner!
It seems like I got on a reading jag of anti-hero
crime novels. Here are four that I read:
THE FIRST QUARRY by Max Allan Collins
(HardCase Crime, $6.99, September, 2008). Rating:
B+ The previous book in the series was THE LAST
QUARRY, which seemed to end the series, but Al Collins
just went back in time and wrote about hit man Quarry’s
first professional killing. And Quarry must have been
somewhat of a “chick magnet” in his early years because
it seems like every attractive woman he meets wants to go
to bed with him.
He has what seems like a simple assignment: kill
a college professor and get his tell-all manuscript about a
Chicago mob boss. But everything that can go wrong
seems to go wrong as the cool and collected Quarry goes
about his business.
Reviews
Not quite as satisfying as THE LAST QUARRY,
but a quick, enjoyable read nonetheless.
HIT AND RUN by Lawrence Block (Morrow,
$24.95, July, 2008). Rating: A Hit man Keller is in Des
Moines, Iowa to perform his last hit before his planned
retirement. Little does he realize that he is being set up to
take the fall for the assassination of the governor of Ohio.
In an instant his life changes and he becomes the most
hunted criminal in the United States. He is also cut off from
all of his resources and must find a way to get enough
money to survive and start a new life.
His travels eventually take him to New Orleans
and a fortuitous change in his luck. This may be the last of
this series, which would be a shame. I’m sure if Larry Block
put his considerably talented thinking cap on, he could
come up with a way to bring Keller back into the fray.
I found HIT AND RUN to be a real joy to read and
I consider it to be the best thriller I’ve read this year. I can’t
think of a better summer read than this. Buy it, spread out
your blanket on the beach and get ready for a lot of fun and
excitement. Oh yeh, don’t forget the sunblock! (Pun
intended.)
DIRTY MONEY by Richard Stark (Grand Central,
$23.99). Rating: B+ Of late, the novels involving
professional thief Parker all seem like short episodes in a
much longer continuing story. DIRTY MONEY starts
right up where the last novel ASK THE PARROT left off
-- Park is on the lam after an armoured car heist. The
police presence was too heavy to escape with the money,
so he and his accomplices hid it in an abandoned church.
A couple of weeks have passed and he's back to figure out
how to get the money out. Parker is met with complications
at every turn, but eventually manages to salvage
something from the situation.
This episode seemed just a little below the general
level of excellence. You're either a fan of this highly
entertaining series or you're not. The author's masterful
use of dialogue only adds to the enjoyment. Long live
Donald E. Westlake (75 years old and going strong) in
whatever persona he may take on!
THE DECEIVED by Brett Battles (Delacorte
Press, $24.00, June, 2008). Rating: A- This is the
sequel to last year’s THE CLEANER and features “cleaner”
Jonathan Quinn, who gets big bucks for cleaning up other
people’s messes. Quinn is asked to dispose of an inconvenient
body found in a shipping container. He is shocked to
find that the body belongs to Stephen Markoff, one of his
best friends – a person who saved his life. So Quinn feels
duty-bound to find out what happened to Steve, so he goes
in search of his Steve’s girlfriend – but she has disappeared.
I liked Battles’ first novel, but feel this is a step up
from that one. A bit more complex and believable.
THE WATER’S EDGE by Daniel Judson (St.
Martin’s Minotaur, $24.95, June, 2008). Rating: A
Former enforcer Jake Bechet has built a new life as a
partner in a Long Island taxi company. All is well until he
hears that two men have been murdered a few miles from