Reviewed by Craig Sisterson
August Snow, an ex-police detective who was fired from the Detroit PD, brought down the entire corrupt department and the mayor with a wrongful dismissal lawsuit. The son of an African American cop and a Mexican American painter, August Snow is most at home in Detroit's Mexicantown neighborhood, where he grew up - the neighborhood he's now returned to and hopes to revitalize with his settlement money of $12 million. The trouble is August has old enemies with scores to settle.
When an old acquaintance, finance magnate Eleanore Paget, hears August is back in town, she tries to hire him to investigate suspicious goings-on at her investment bank. August declines - detective work is no longer his beat. When Eleanore is found dead the next day of an apparent suicide, August doesn't buy it for a minute. His search for her killer will drag him into a rat's nest of Detroit's most dangerous criminals.
Back when I was a kid and used to split my weekends and school holidays between the sports fields and hanging out with mates, and the local library, I regularly used to 'discover' new-to-me authors whose work resonated with me, and I'd read through their entire backlist, or a good chunk of it at least, before then looking for other authors to try. Whether it was Agatha Christie's Poirot mysteries, or Alistair MacLean's thrillers, John Christopher's 'Tripods' books, or William Horwood's Duncton Chronicles.
Nowadays I rarely even read multiple books from a single author in a single year, despite reading a lot. There are authors I read most years, of course. But with reviewing, article writing, and awards judging, I'm going for breadth of coverage rather than deep-diving into a single author. (Though the idea of setting aside some time to go back to the beginning and work consecutively through some favourite long-running series, whether Michael Connelly's Bosch books or Val McDermid's Tony and Carol tales or James Lee Burke's Robicheaux novels, etc, does appeal for a future project, sometime.)
But occasionally a new-to-me author grabs me so powerfully I just have to read another of their books right away. Recent example: Stephen Mack Jones. DEAD OF WINTER, his third tale starring ousted Detroit cop August Snow, is published in May and I was lucky enough to read an advance copy.
That book was so terrific - lyrical and powerful writing, strong characters, exceptional sense of place, some fresh touches (full review to be published closer to release date) - that I immediately went and bought the first in the series, AUGUST SNOW on audiobook. (I've been some daily park walks during the pandemic, so listening to books as well as reading them.) Jones' debut earned him the Nero Award and the Hammett Prize, both of which celebrate 'literary excellence' in crime and mystery writing.
Listening to AUGUST SNOW as I looped through some SW London parks, I could certainly see why Jones has those prestigious awards on his mantelpiece. His crime storytelling is fresh and full of lovely wee touches and surprises that elevate it from the crowd. You can see the influence of his background as a playwright and poet: his dialogue sings and there's real lyricism to his description and action.
August Snow is a fascinating character. The son of an African American cop father and a Mexican American artist mother, he's like a modern Motor City version of a rōnin samurai. August once served the US military abroad as a marine sniper, then he served his city as a Detroit cop, before he was ousted in dubious circumstances. Now he has no master he serves. Just a ten-figure bank balance - a silver lining to the dubious ending to his cop career - and a strong loyalty to his friends and community.
While August is not too bothered about saying no to Eleanore Paget, a hideously wealthy, acerbic woman who asks him to investigate dodgy dealings at her bank, he is bothered when she turns up dead. A very convenient suicide. Digging deeper, August finds himself in all sorts of trouble, with everyone from the FBI to his former Detroit PD colleagues and some very powerful and deadly people.
AUGUST SNOW is a terrific read (or listen) from a terrific storyteller. It was so good I extended my walks significantly so I could devour it all in a day or two. I can't wait to read more in the series.
Craig Sisterson is a lapsed Kiwi lawyer who now lives in London and writes for magazines and newspapers in several countries. He’s interviewed hundreds of crime writers and talked about the genre on national radio, top podcasts, and onstage at festivals on three continents. Craig's been a judge of the Ned Kelly Awards, McIlvanney Prize, is founder of the Ngaio Marsh Awards and co-founder of Rotorua Noir. His book SOUTHERN CROSS CRIME, was published in 2020.
No comments:
Post a Comment