The Big Mango [Paperback]

Norman Kelley (Editor)

Book Description

Series: Nina Halligan Series | Publication Date: September 1, 2000

Fiction. African American Studies. Picking up where BLACK HEAT, the first installment of the Nina Halligan trilogy -- also available from SPD -- left off, THE BIG MANGO takes the reader to the tropical island-nation of Misericordia. This action mystery novel follows Nina Halligan, Private Investigator, as she deals with popular uprisings, corporate mercenaries, political subversives and a bloody and costly effort to return the island to its people. Norman Kelley is a freelance journalist, author and producer at WBAI (Pacifica Radio) in New York.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Want a scathing social and political satire? Look no further than Kelley's second effort featuring "bad girl" African-American PI and part-time intellectual Nina HalliganDit's X-rated, but a romp of a read. Father Pierre-Pierre Bernard, the Aristide-like president of the Haiti-like isle of Misericordia (or "Big Mango"), has lost power in his country and wants Nina's help to get it back. While in Washington to meet the exiled president, Nina consoles friend Gale, a history professor who turns S/M tricks on the side, after Gale's husband, Michael, an aide to the Clinton-like U.S. president, is found with half his head blown off in a hotel bedroom. To add to the horror, the seemingly straight Michael had been engaging in gay sexDand shooting up heroin. Or had he? Motivated in part to find the killer of her own husband, who along with their two children was horribly murdered in her first outing, Black Heat (1997), Nina goes to Misericordia, where the rebel factions that ousted Bertrand are fighting among themselves. Nina's old lover, Luc, comes back into her life in a blaze of bazookas, and she consorts (and cavorts) with an outlandish cast of characters, from a hermaphrodite to a voodoo priestess. Nina's acid takes on recognizable public figures and institutions both amuse and offend. (Calling Lingua Franca "an utterly useless, niche-market magazine for the academically inclined" is one of her milder putdowns.) Kelley spares no one, blacks and whites alike, and this provocative novel is sure to attract attention, if only after it's burned by legions of angry, mystified mystery fans. (Oct.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

Want a scathing social & political satire? Look no further than Kelley's second effort...[T]his provocative novel is sure to attract attention... -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) September 25, 2000

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 270 pages
• Publisher: Akashic Books (September 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1888451106
• ISBN-13: 978-1888451108
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,463,153 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Maybe not a mango, but it certainly is juicy!!, August 21, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Big Mango (Paperback)

If you're looking for a strong, independent and savvy black female detective, Nina Halligan is The One! Norman Kelley has something to say about politics in the good ole US of A and his protagonist, Nina Halligan, is the right vessel through which to make his points. The novel is well written and the characters are believable. Kelley's ability to blend present day government corruption and fantasy raises the phrase "life is truer than fiction" to an art form. The only reason this didn't get a 5-star rating from me concerns the rather inconsistent ending. A little too heavy on the mystical when it really wasn't necessary. Nevertheless, I look forward to the next installment.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A savvy, and sexy, political thriller, May 28, 2001

By 

"blissengine" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Big Mango (Paperback)

This second Nina Halligan thriller finds the African-American private investigator trying to find who killed and slandered a friend's husband, who was a White House aide. As the investigation becomes more personal, Nina follows the trail to the tiny Caribbean island nation of Misericordia, where apparently the man who killed Nina's husband and children is living under an alias. With her lesbian best friend Anna, Nina travels to Misericordia, where the two find themselves in the middle of a civil war. Kelley's writing is highly compelling and draws the reader quickly into the story with sharp and feisty characters. The ending is a bit of a reach though. And his politics are rather heavily slathered over the story, and sometimes his characters seem to lack depth, but overall I feel this is an excellent political mystery thriller with a great, progressive political slant. It's highly feminist, which is always a refreshing discovery.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars did not put it down, August 29, 2002

By 

R. H Porter (indianapolis, indiana USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Big Mango (Paperback)

I did not put this book down when I started reading it. I was glad that Nina realized that she had to let the past go and move on with her life. I was especially glad that Anna survived that ordeal. I really like Anna and Nina. I like how honest they are with each other and other people. I really like Ninas' moxy. I hope to see more Nina Halligan novels in the future.