Customer Reviews

Lady, Lady, I Did It! (87th Precinct Mysteries)

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

 

 

This is the fourteenth McBain book I have read and I think I have given all of them a five. This envolves the shooting of four people in book store. One of them is Claire Townsend, the girl fiend of Bert Kling, one of the 87th Precinct policemen. The story takes you through the interview of the people who new and were in contact with the four people killed. Why where they killed? Was it just a random thing or was the killer after one of them and didn't care who else he shot? Was he after Claire? All points that way but don't be sure. All the policemen are after the killer because he killed a girlfriend of one of theirs. You can feel the pain and hurt Bert goes through. You can see how hard the others are wanting to catch the killer. A clue is there from the beginning but does not dawn on the searchers until the last. You will be surprised. A book that is short, easy to read and very good.

This book is a must read for every 87th precinct fan. It provides that gritty McBain action, along with some important emotional moments for our favorite homocide detectives. Bert Kling loses someone close to him in a tragic accident. Bert and the whole precinct doggedly pursue the killer which leads to a thrilling climax.

This book is harder to review. I definitely enjoy McBain's style of writing and continue to be amazed by how relevant his characters, crime scenes and conversation is today, year 2012. However, it is this same realism that prevents the story from taking an unexpected turn or twist. Hence, I would classify this story as belonging more to a "realistic crime" genre, rather than a "mystery/thriller", the former being more grounded on the fact that life isn't as dynamic as Hollywood is, and the latter being more for reading enjoyment/whodunit thrill.

This does not take away from the fact that this is an excellently written piece of fiction, and I remain a fan of the author.

Recommendation: Read it, with my disclaimer above.