Customer Reviews

The Intersection of Law and Desire: A Micky Knight Mystery

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This was the first book of this Genre (Lesbian Detective) that I have read. I found this book to be intriguing and engrossing with a plot that explores what I feel is becoming a serious problem in this day and age, the subject of child sexual abuse and child pornography.

I found the character of Micky Knight to be delightful. Not what I was expecting from a hardcore detective. I was expecting her to be a hard drinking, heavy smoking, foul-mouthed type of PI. Definitley a surprise to find that she wasn't like this at all. Hardcore PI when necessary, yet, compassionate and intelligent. One thing in particular that I liked abou this book was the ability of Ms. Redmann to make the character of Micky Knight to be hardcore without the constant use of vulgar language. The few hardcore detective novels I have read in the past tend to use vulgar language to a point that almost every sentence contains some sort of explitive.

Ms. Redmann does an outstanding job of keeping the reader fooled throughout the book. Many times I thought that I had it all figured out only to be surprised a few pages or chapters later. Ms. Redmanns ability to describe things is also a plus. Having traveled to New Orleans on numerous occasions, I found her descriptions of the French Quarter and the West bandk areas to be very vivid and accurate.

Being the first book that I have read by Ms. Redmann, and not being one who reads a lot of hardcore detective stories, it would be very unfair of me to attempt to compare her to other authors. If you are looking for a detective novel that is different, but will keep you on your toes and guessing throughout, then this page turner is for you. Please don't judge it based on the grounds that the lead character is a Lesbian. I almost did and am now glad that I didn't. I plan on reading other books by Ms. Redmann.

In spite of its slow start, our group thought this was a worthwhile read! J.M. Redmann introduces Micky Knight, a lesbian detective with a past. We were drawn into both her personal and public life; we cared about what happened to her; and we loved the final action/adventure scenes that had her in a gunfight with a group of cutthroat rivermen who'd been selling sex with "throwaway" children. How can you go wrong with a butch detective who borrows cocktail dresses from her cross-dressing cousin so she can fit in at the most exclusive club in town?? Humor, misunderstandings, sex for sex sake, and difficult relationships joined the mix with child pornography, homophobia in the South, therapists who step over the line, and people who will do anything for money. There are so many facets to this book it would be difficult to summarize them all, but J.M. Redmann managed to put alot into this one! If you get hung up on the child pornography topic, as many in our group! did, stay with it, the story is well worth the trip! And oh yeah.... the sex scenes are hot! (you've been warned!) If you're looking for a mystery that has more than a whodunit plot or a detective who has more depth than Dick Tracy, and more character than Nancy Drew, check out Michelle "Micky" Knight in The Intersection of Law and Desire.

This Micky Knight novel, third in the series, goes even deeper in Micky's past and the issues she has because of it. The crime plot centers around child pornography, which isn't easy to read, especially in context with Micky's childhood.

She's such a fascinating character. What makes this one especially good and painful to read is that she closes herself off from her friends, for reasons make sense to her at the time. So she's going it alone, and that loneliness is written very well. It's painful to see how a part of her wants to reach out, and how her friends have seemingly cut her off.

Maybe I don't know where to look, but character studies like this are hard to find and I wish there were more. These novels want to explore a character, and other things, like the crime plot and the romance, while good, all aid that one goal.

I read Intersection of Law and Desire first, since it's the one in the stores, then got Death By The Riverside from Amazon.com-fancy that. Micky is deep and disturbed in Death, but earned my respect. I believe in her ability, not to merely survive anymore, but to actually find some happiness, and am rooting for her all the way. It's great to see such a well developed, complex character come to us in Lesbian genre fiction-Redmann truly makes Micky (and the other pivotal characters) three dimensional, rather than the superficial characterizations we read too often. Micky has a lot going for her, and Redmann tantalizes us with just enough of Micky's stubbornly hidden sophistication to make us see what the women who love her see in her. The mystery sizzles in both books with complex plots, and the atmosphere is delightedly dark and haunting. We are almost transported to the bayou country; we can smell the food and feel the humidity in the air-I was swatting imaginary ! mosquitoes while reading in my air-conditioned home.

I wrote this review specifically to ask Ms. Redmann when we might make a return trip to New Orleans. I'd like to see how Micky and Cordelia are doing, and would love to get up to my neck in trouble with them again. I encourage Ms. Redmann to write!!

I'm a die hard K Forrest who got turned onto J redmann by the women at Niad Press and I'm hooked, so hooked I contacted Ms. Redmann to find out how much longer we have to wait till the next M Knight book. At least she didn't hang up on me. All I can say is after reading some 30 or so recent books this was Simply the Best.

The mystery part is totally unbelievable. The lesbian sex scene probably less so. The author should find another genre to discuss her/his insights than the fairly clearly defined genre that mystery is

I thought The Intersection of Law and Desire was a great read. Both my partner and I found it addicting and almost impossible to put down! However, I found the ending left a lot of loose ends, I HOPE this means a sequel will come out and tie them all up! (As we will be sure to buy it!)

I can't say enough about this book! I'll be first in line for the next one. A very human character, a great story, and enough loose ends to keep me coming back for more! Brava!!