Close Call [Large Print] [Paperback]

John McEvoy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 15, 2008

Ex-amateur boxer and failed advertising account executive Jack Doyle, hero of Blind Switch, returns to the world of thoroughbred horse racing at a suburban Chicago track in this new thriller by the author of award-winning Riders Down. With the help of furrier-to-the-mob Moe Kellman, Doyle is hired as publicity director at Monee Park, a struggling suburban Chicago track owned by heiress Celia McCann. Celia is fighting to keep the business afloat while awaiting passage of a law allowing the introduction of lucrative video slot machines at Monee Park. Meanwhile, she is under pressure from her co-heir and cousin, Niall Hanratty, to close the track and sell the valuable property to real estate developers. Working hard to convince Celia to sell are a pair of hired thugs from Chicagoas Canaryville neighborhood. Celia, whose husband is afflicted with ALS, is determined to maintain the business inherited from her beloved uncle Jim Joyce. The exploits of star sprinter Rambling Rosie help Celiaas cause, as do the efforts of the redoubtable Doyle, again a somewhat reluctant knight errant who rises to the occasion when needed. Written from an insideras viewpoint, and featuring a robust cast of offbeat characters, Close Call provides entertaining insight into the unique world of American horse racing with a climax as exciting as a Derby photo finish.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In McEvoy's so-so third horse-racing mystery (after 2006's Riders Down), failed ad man Jack Doyle, introduced in 2004's Blind Switch, is happy to land a gig as public relations director for Monee Park, a struggling thoroughbred racetrack south of Chicago. He soon finds himself smitten with the track's beautiful owner, Celia McCann, who's struggling to keep Monee Park afloat and tend to her husband afflicted with Lou Gehrig's disease. Proposed legislation that would allow the installation of video slot machines could save Monee Park, but Celia's co-heir, scheming Irishman Niall Hanratty, is determined to make sure the deal falls through. Confronted with Niall's goons—hired to sabotage the track and force Celia to sell the property to real estate developers—Jack realizes he's stepped into the middle of something bigger than horse racing. McEvoy sounds the right notes, but he did a better job of capturing the flavor of the racing world in his previous two novels. (Mar.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

Jack Doyle, the likable protagonist from Blind Switch (2004), is a magnet for trouble. Doyle no sooner takes a job as publicity director for Monee Park, a struggling Thoroughbred track in Chicago, than it comes under attack. The initial acts of sabotage—a robbery, a blackout, and an attempted arson—seem designed to drive Monee Park out of business before slot-machine legislation can be passed to save it. But who is behind the sabotage, and why? Doyle takes a personal interest for reasons that include an unseemly attraction to the track’s pretty young owner, who is married to a man dying of a wasting disease; that attraction introduces an element of moral ambiguity as well as a hefty dose of personal risk. It’s a tale of greed and corruption played out in a milieu that McEvoy, himself a longtime racetracker, understands as well as any writer in the genre. The author gets the details right, a rarity in racing fiction, while delivering all the suspense of a photo finish. --Dennis Dodge --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press (March 15, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590584961
• ISBN-13: 978-1590584965
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,501,462 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Race to the Finish, April 26, 2008

By 

Ted Feit (Long Beach, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Close Call (Hardcover)

In the previous three novels in the series, John McEvoy demonstrated his uncanny ability to match the master, Dick Francis, in writing mysteries with a horseracing background. Now, he again has written a memorable tale using the same protagonist, Jack Doyle, and his "fairy godfather" and raconteur, the furrier-to-the-mob, Moe Kellman.

Just returned from New Zealand and at loose ends, Moe suggests that Jack become the publicity and advertising director of a rundown racing park south of Chicago, Monee Park. The track was owned and operated for many years by Moe's friend, Jim Joyce, who recently died, leaving 51 percent ownership to his niece, with the balance to his nephew who lives in Ireland. The racetrack is run down and hardly making any money. The niece, whose husband suffers from ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease), intends to keep running the track in the memory of her uncle. The nephew would rather have it sold to developers and use the cash to expand his bookmaking business.

From this conflicting interest a whole series of events takes place, with Jack at the center. As in previous entries in the series, this book is tautly written and suspenseful, well-plotted and exciting right up to the conclusion. It is highly recommended.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars fine damsel in distress thriller, March 15, 2008

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Close Call (Hardcover)

Former boxer failed advertising account executive Jack Doyle is euphoric with his new position as the public relations director for Monee Park thoroughbred racetrack outside of Chicago. However, Jack also knows the job may prove fleeting as the track struggles financially with bankruptcy a very strong possibility. Besides liking the job, Jack is also attracted to his employer, Celia McCann, whose husband suffers from Lou Gehrig's disease.

Celia's hopes of saving the track that she and her cousin Niall Hanratty co-inherited from her Uncle Jim reside with the legislature that is considering allowing Monee Park to install video slot machines. However, Niall wants to sell the property to developers. He hires hooligans to disrupt and impair the track. Jack believes he must protect Celia anyway he can.

Jack Doyle remains an interesting lead character (see RIDERS DOWN and BLIND SWITCH) as he tries to keep his employer safe from her cousin, keep the race afloat, and keep his hands off the married dedicated woman he desires. The story line is action packed as thugs sabotage and threaten Celia. However, the milieu of a racetrack is underplayed as CLOSE CALL never digs deep into world of thoroughbred racing like its predecessors did. Still fans who enjoy a damsel in distress thriller will find John McEvoy's latest a winner.

Harriet Klausner

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Close Call review, April 3, 2008

By 

Huseyin Sehitoglu "hs" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Close Call (Hardcover)

Riders Down won the Benjamin Franklin Award for Best Mystery/Suspense and I loved it, so I read Blind Switch and Close Call. Jack Doyle is the protagonist in both of the latter novels. I was happy to pick up with his adventures in Close Call. I knew he wouldn't stay in New Zealand or with his lover there, nor does he stay with the love interest in this book, but there is something irresistible about this guy: funny, a former fighter/handy to have around kind of guy if you find yourself constantly in trouble (as Celia Mann, owner of a suburban race track does). McEvoy covers a lot in this novel: racing, of course -- politics, Ireland, drugs, disease, loss and infidelity. McEvoy is old school - that's hard to find these days! You'll be glad you found Close Call.