Customer Reviews

Killing the Boss

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4 star:		(2)
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This is a clever and fast-paced book that works both as a murder mystery and a sly satire of the business world. The story concerns the murdered vice president of a group of salesmen at a kitchenware company. The entire story is told through a blend of police clues, emails, news reports and suspect interviews. This unique approach creates great tension and realism. The characters are often humorous and keep you guessing. The events unfold like a movie and the ending will blow your mind. I read it in one sitting.

Mystery lovers who fashion themselves competent sleuths in their own right will rejoice at the sight of Pinkerton's delicious format; eschewing traditional form in exchange for a story delivered the way law enforcement officials usually digest it (evidence and clues via media reports, police transcripts, office emails and memos), "Killing the Boss" is a creative and clever yarn worthy of investigation.

You can read an extended version of this review at: http://www.thebooxreview.com

This is a good, solid story. The story is told primarily through the use of repeated interviews of several people. Each person has his/her own unique voice. It is never necessary to flip back to determine who is being interviewed. The characters become well-developed and well-defined through the voices of the other characters. The reader is able to get to know all the characters, develop favorites and take guesses at solving the mystery. The most important part of how this story is told is that the reader is able to fall into the story and see the events unfolding. It is a well-told story that takes the reader into the narrative. This is Pinkerton's first published novel. He tells a good story in a difficult format and introduces us to characters we can love or hate based on their development. This is an excellent first book. Future books are promising and cetainly worth looking for. Renee'

Killing the Boss is a great mystery, written with such creativity. I couldn't put the book down!

A great, quick read for any mystery lover. Once you think you've figured it out, you come to find out there's more... and more!

Brian Pinkerton is so creative in telling the stories from a detective's perspective. I would highly recommend this book!

Brian Pinkerton has devised a neat way of telling his mystery/thriller Killing the Boss. The author uses KitchenWork's memos, e-mails, interrogations, media reports, wiretaps, and other accounts to tell the story of how a boss, Douglas Dardis, who seems to brow beat his staff drives his workers to actually kill him. But things can be deceiving and Pinkerton does a fabulous job of taking us through the process. There are suspects aplenty. Due to its structure, it's possible for a reader to pick this book up and actually complete it in one sitting; IT'S THAT GOOD! Having also read Abducted and Vengeance two more great books by Pinkerton, I've been looking forward to reading more of his work.

I absolutely LOVED this book. It is very cool and exciting to read. I especially liked the unusual format using email, memos and police reports. The skipping from one segment to another makes the book even more exciting! It is fast paced and thrilling ! I love reading murder mysteries in offices! The book gives such a realistic description of a nasty boss, that I got upset reading about the treatment of one of the characters. Who hasn't had a boss like that? The book started a conversation at work about bosses who should be murdered!

I will be on the lookout for more books by this author.

Chicago Tribune, Friday, June 9, 2000
Kitchen Works Vice-President Found Slain In Office

Douglas Dardis, 52, Vice-President Sales for Kitchen Works, was found slain in office. Dardis suffered severe head trauma from repeated blows by a blunt instrument. No weapon has been found. Dardis had been with Kitchen Works for five months and was known to rule with an iron hand and a neo-nazi style. Due to his micromanagement style he wasn't known to have any allies at Kitchen Works. Employees remembered him as an individual who thought himself to be their savior. Dardis had informed employees that, "It has been apparent that in the past, you experienced a lack of strong leadership. People did their own thing at their own pace, and quality control was low priority. Many of you have poor work habits nurtured by your prior environment. This can be repaired. A number of employees are resisting the tides of change. I will not name names, but I will set forth this response. You will not win. I am raising the bar for your division and if you cannot accept it, there are thousands of other employment opportunities in Chicago." Given these harsh words, there is no wonder that none of the employees shared any love lost for Dardis and that in fact some of them might have wanted him dead. Thus far, no one has been eliminated from the investigation, however, the leading suspects are:

Lydia Gray--Dardis' very pregnant secretary. Gray was afraid of miscarrying because of the duress that she was working under. Dardis didn t like for Gray to leave her desk to go to lunch or to the bathroom. Dardis made her reschedule a critical doctor s appointment, remove her personal items from her cubicle and take a sandwich back because it didn't include mayo even tho the woman was eight months pregnant and shouldn't have been running personal errands for him.

Wally Cleveland Manager of Sales. Wally had suffered a prior heart attack and was instructed to take nitroglycerin only as needed. When Dardis came on board Cleveland went to a pill a day and told employees that he was thinking about retiring rather than enduring the heavy hand of Dardis.

Bill Sutton Senior Sales Representative. Bill was upset and lost his temper after he learned that he wouldn't move up as the next Manager of Sales if Cleveland retired. Bill felt that the position belonged to him because he was promised the position by Cleveland. Bill s uproar cost him his job and he was subsequently fired.

Seth Frigo Senior Sales Representative. Seth was known to be a brown-noser, however, he worked out his anxiety via writing. Could he possibly be the one who sent the threatening notes to Dardis?

Mack Ruge Sales Representative. Ruge had a prior arrest for assaulting his boss at a former company.

Dolores Fowler Customer Support Supervisor. Fowler made the mistake of sharing with Dardis that she was a former Playboy Centerfold Miss August 1985 aka Vivian Vixen. After this revelation, Fowler started receiving harassing notes and phone calls which she perceived were coming from Dardis. Fowler is known to have connections with the Mob. Could she have hired someone to kill Dardis?

Helen McCarthy Catalogue Coordinator. McCarthy was an overzealous Christian who kept in contact with her deaf and elderly mother via faxes and emails. Dardis initially approved McCarthy s use of the facsimile and computer to send her mother messages but later he complained about it. Additionally, McCarthy was insulted when Dardis swiftly looked at her catalogue layout and told her that she needed to start over. A fellow employee commented that McCarthy had a mean streak under that church girl look.

Killing the Boss is a creatively crafted and ingeniously written mystery with a killing of the boss just waiting to happen. The author provides a suspenseful read along with a satirical view of the business world. The story is realistically told like an actual police investigation through a blend of police clues, emails, news reports and suspect interviews. The characters were colorful and the author kept you guessing regarding who the killer was. Gosh was I shocked when I found out who masterminded this brilliant scheme! Killing the Boss by Brian Pinkerton provides shocking and surprising plot twists and turns that will have you in awe and anxiously awaiting the next book from this talented writer.

Reviewed by Yasmin