Highway Robbery (Owen Allison Mysteries) [Hardcover]

John Billheimer (Author)

Book Description

Series: Owen Allison Mysteries | Publication Date: February 2000

When road construction by West Virginia's highway department uncovers human remains near the small town of Barkley, everyone involved stops dead in their tracks. Everyone, including Owen Allison, whose mother calls him home right away on a trumped-up excuse, seems to have a theory on the skeleton's identity. But when another dead body is discovered--this one a lot fresher-- the simple forensic investigation turns into something much deeper.

And it all seems to begin and end with the Allisons, for thirty-five years ago, Owen's father, West Virginia highway commissioner Wayne Allison, disappeared, thought to have drowned when a burst dam flooded the town. Owen's mother is convinced the skeleton is her husband's. But that's not all of the trouble on the Allison home front. Now Owen's troubled older brother George is highway commissioner, and he's facing problems both personal and professional, from his political appointee boss to a team of environmental activists determined to stop local highway expansion. Owen must piece together the mysteries in Barkley's past - as well as those in his own family history - and uncover the truth before he becomes the next victim.

Highway Robbery is an outstanding follow-up to John Billheimer's original and acclaimed debut, The Contrary Blues, once again tackling small-town politics with humor and a good measure of suspense.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

In his second mystery after The Contrary Blues, largely unemployed risk consultant Owen Allsion returns to Barkley, WV, at the request of his other when a raod construction crew uncovers a skeleton. She believes the remains may be honest highway commissioner, who supposedly drowned in a dam collapse some 35 years earlier. So Owen delves into his family past and highway scandals, defends his brother (also a highway commissioner) who suddenly disappears, and looks for at leat one murderer. Low-key, competent narration; country characters, dry humor, and a surprise culprit; for most collections.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

Seems like nobody's interested in building roads anymore. Not West Virginia Director of Transportation Alicia Fox, who, without an engineering degree, stalls every road project on her drawing board, installing self-destructing (but environmentally friendly) traffic cones, and verbally abusing Highway Commissioner George Allison, son of the corruption-busting late Commissioner Wayne Allison. Certainly not Mary Jewel Robertson, who leads her brigade of tomato-hurling environmentalists on a charge that stops Eddie Hager's road crew dead in its tracks in the middle of their repaving job on Gobbler's Grade. But not quite as dead as Ray Cantrip, whose body Hager's bulldozer unearths right under the asphalt. The discovery brings home George's brother Owen, hero of the Contrary transit scandal (The Contrary Blues, 1998), to investigate the death of his father's best friendwho's also Owens best friend's father. As straight-arrow Owen grapples with the past, alcoholic George is plagued by the present: the loss of his job, the collapse of his marriage, and finally an indictment for murder after Mary Jewel is found dead in her apartment with his fingerprints on her front door. Accompanied by his ubiquitous ex-wife Judith, Owen digs up and repairs misdeeds past and present to prove the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Billheimer occasionally rushes his action, baiting the trap only to spring it a page or so later. But the intricately layered plot and gentle good humor make this a worthy successor to his first. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books; 1st edition (February 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312252471
• ISBN-13: 978-0312252472
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,950,860 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Even better than Contrary Blues, March 5, 2000

By 

history buff "David" (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Highway Robbery (Owen Allison Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Highway Robbery is even better than Contrary Blues which was outstanding. Mixes life, mystery, humor, and romance with almost perfect pitch. Usually I am a little disappointed with the answer at the end of a mystery novel. This time I was not. The twists and turns were cleverly constructed. And the tale is witty and insightful with out the mystery.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another solid effort by a writer destined for success, February 27, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Highway Robbery (Owen Allison Mysteries) (Hardcover)

'Highway Robbery', the second in the 'Owen Allison' murder Mystery series, demonstrates that author John Billheimer is not content to just weave an amusing yarn, but has the ability to surprise and satisfy the reader with a writing style that belies the fact that this is only his second book.

While retaining the down home style of his first novel that found favor with readers, Billheimer paints a fast paced story that delivers enough tension to keep the reader interested until the mystery is solved. But readers who quit at that point will miss a stunning ending. Don't put it down until you've read the last page!

This is a well written, creative story, that I highly recommend. I give it four of five stars.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a review from Forbes October 2, 2000 issue, September 18, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Highway Robbery (Owen Allison Mysteries) (Hardcover)

October 2, 2000

By Steve Forbes Editor-in-Chief

ROAD RAGE

Highway Robbery--by John Billheimer (St. Martin's Minotaur, $24.95). A wonderful blend of numerous, superbly developed--and often eccentric--characters; wry, politically incorrect humor; surprises and suspense, spiced with some of West Virginia's legendary skulduggery-encrusted politics makes for an always interesting murder mystery. Our California-based hero, Owen Allison, is suddenly called home to West Virginia by his mother. She suspects that a skeleton uncovered by a road construction crew is that of her late husband (and Owen's father), who supposedly drowned in a flood decades ago. Owen's father was that true West Virginia rarity--an honest highway commissioner. He and his scruples didn't sit well with plenty of pols and contractors. The mother's hunch about the body is wrong, but she's dead right about her husband's having been the victim of foul play. As Owen discovers, several people have skeletons they'd like to keep hidden in the closet.

This is Billheimer's second mystery. Read it, and you'll be looking for his first--and praying he turns out more like these.