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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Reviewing: Dead Boyfriends, May 5, 2008
This review is from: Dead Boyfriends (Hardcover)
Rushmore McKenzie returns in this fourth novel in the series as does crime, murder, violence and politics. In most books they would be just themes but in the hands of David Housewright they take on a life of their own and become characters in their own way.
While heading out to buy a dining room set from a friend, a very lost Rushmore McKenzie is flagged down by a woman begging for help. The woman claims that her boyfriend is dead. Considering her appearance which certainly indicates something very bad has happened, former police officer McKenzie decides to get out of his car into the Minnesota summer heat and investigate.
Something very bad has happened, indeed.
After seeing the grisly scene, McKenzie backs out of the home and calls it in. The woman has gone catatonic from the shock and the fact that the first officer on the scene from the Anoka Police Department is abusive towards her doesn't help. When he becomes violent with the woman, McKenzie interferes and the officer turns on him with the ultimate result that McKenzie soon finds himself in jail. That causes the dream, one that he hadn't had for quite awhile, to return in all its disturbing glory.
He later learns when he is finally released many hours later that the woman who flagged him down, Merodie Davies, is in custody. While she hasn't been charged yet in the murder of Eli Thomas Jefferson, she does have an attorney, G. K. Bonalay. Bonalay enlists McKenzie's help in the case. With him doing the legwork and Bonalay using her connections, they begin to unravel a sordid mess going back deep into the past.
Powerfully connected people corrupt to their core in Minnesota have long been a theme in this series and it is very present in this novel. So too are others such as violence, murder, McKenzie's troubled past, his romance with Nina, and many other items long familiar to readers of this strong series.
Unlike most series books, this one can be treated as a stand alone for readers new to this series. Other than the dream which is a nightmare and referred to again in detail in several places in this novel, earlier events in the series are not covered at all or get the barest of mentions. The nightmare/dream sequence is used to remind readers of his past as well as to create another obstacle in this novel for him to surmount as he works an increasingly complex and challenging case.
Edgar award winning author David Housewright has penned another strong novel that entertains while delivering something to think about after the book is done. This is another good one.
Kevin R. Tipple (copyright) 2008
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not his best but still enjoyable, June 12, 2007
This review is from: Dead Boyfriends (Hardcover)
First Sentence: The dream came back to haunt me the night they threw me in jail.
Former policeman Rushmore McKenzie is retired, wealthy and does favors for people. Merodie Davies has problems with alcohol and men, particularly the one who has been dead for several days upstairs. When she finds him and runs screaming into the street, the policeman on the scene is roughing her up rather than questioning her. McKenzie steps into the scene and is thrown in jail for his efforts. Convinced by Merodie's attorney to help her, McKenzie finds things are not as simple as they appear and that the case resurrects old nightmares.
Books by Housewright are always a pleasure but this one; not quite as much as some of the others. McKenzie is a great character and it's nice to see him overcome his past and grow to the next level in his romantic life. However, unless you've read the previous books, other recurring characters, and certainly the new characters, were very one dimensional. The plot kept the story moving forward and provided some exciting moments, but was imminently forgettable. It really was McKenzie's story, and that's not all bad but I'll hope the next book is a bit more well rounded.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A very satisfying read, May 1, 2007
This review is from: Dead Boyfriends (Hardcover)
Rushmore McKenzie(Mac) is a former cop who resigned from the force when he received the reward money for catching Thomas Teachwell. Mac is an unlicensed PI and very wealthy. He often does favors for friends and others when he believes in the cause.
It all started when Mac gets lost while searching for a house in Coon Rapids, Minnesota. He wants to buy a dining room set. A disheveled and blood-spattered woman (Merodie Davies) appears in the street waving her arms--and being an amiable Minnesotan, Mac stops his car to help. Soon he discovers the decaying body of the woman's boyfriend in her home.
When a young rookie police officer roughs up the woman, Mac stops him. For his effort, he finds himself in jail. The next thing he knows, he's reliving his own personal nightmares, his girlfriend breaks up with him for missing an important date (never mind he was in jail), the woman he tried to help looks good for the boyfriend's murder, and Mac is planning his own revenge on the cops.
Mac joins forces (of sorts) with the jailed woman's attorney and what appears to be a case of a cheating boyfriend, ends up propelling him into a string of dead boyfriends and a secret in Merodie's past. Mac's going to have a difficult time with this case--but he'll see it through to the end. He always does.
David Housewright is one of my favorite mystery authors. I'd read a cereal box if he wrote it. I really like Mac's character and enjoy his determination and sense of loyalty. He's the guy in the white hat, seeking to preserve justice for all. And he's always willing to put himself in harm's way to accomplish his goals. No risk, no reward.
Dead Boyfriends is a fun ride with twists enough to surprise everyone. Housewright's attention to the various Twin Cities locals is spot on and tremendous fun for those of us who live here. His characters are rich and complex, his plot intriguing and satisfying.
Armchair Interviews says: Read all of Housewright's mysteries, you'll be glad you did.
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