Midnight Guardians (Max Freeman Novels) [Hardcover]

Jonathon King (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2012 | Series: Max Freeman Novels

The thrilling new Max Freeman mystery - When private eye Max Freeman is hired to investigate a conspiracy involving fake claims to Medicare, he quickly realizes the scheme is much more dangerous than anyone assumed. And when the Brown Man, a former drug kingpin who once helped Max catch a serial killer, reappears in a slick new guise, Max must reclaim his street instincts, to protect not just the citizens of South Florida, but also his girlfriend, Detective Sherry Richards . . .

(20120102)

Editorial Reviews

Review

In Edgar-winner King’s captivating sixth Max Freeman thriller (after 2007’s Acts of Nature), the Florida PI, formerly a Philadelphia street cop, agrees to help nurse Luz Carmen, a whistle-blower in a case concerning the theft of Medicare and Medicaid patient numbers. Luz fears more for the life of her brother, who’s delivering the numbers to the crooks in the fraud scheme, than for her own. Max also has to worry about protecting his detective girlfriend, Sherry Richards, to whom a troubled deputy has given the names of some shady associates. Max and Luz wind up hiding in the Everglades, where Max finds solace (“the leaving of noise and machinery and stops signs and unnatural lighting... calms even the most turbulent soul”). Sharp characterization and the vivid picture of South Florida’s dwindling natural treasures more than compensate for a standard plot involving police treachery.

(Publishers Weekly )

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Severn House Publishers (January 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0727881051
• ISBN-13: 978-0727881052
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #657,655 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Born into a blue-collar family in Lansing, Michigan in the mid 50s with the generational expectation of becoming an autoworker. Discovered John D. MacDonald as a teenage reader and unknowingly began a circuitous path that would eventually lead to Fort Lauderdale (home of Travis McGee) where I began my own mystery writing career.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, February 2, 2012

By 

Sebastian Fernandez (Tampa, Florida United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Midnight Guardians (Max Freeman Novels) (Hardcover)

I am a big fan of Jonathon King and this is the first time he has disappointed me with a book, hopefully it will be the last, since he is definitely a great writer and I am confident that his future efforts will far surpass this one. The main area when this novel falls short is in the plot, the mystery / thriller portion of the story is pretty dull.

Towards the end, King speeds up the pace of the story a little, but by that point the damage is done, and the reader is left unsatisfied. The main redeeming quality I found in this novel is that there is quite a bit of time spent on the personal story of the main characters. Max and his girlfriend Sherry are dealing with the aftershock of the events that developed in the previous novel and that ended up with Sherry losing one of her legs. Of course, this situation allows for a complex emotional development of the story, and those that have been following the series will likely appreciate this.

Given the pros and cons of this book, I would say that those that are fans of the series, will probably be somewhat disappointed, but will also find some redeeming qualities in the work. However, those that have not read any of the books in the series should search elsewhere, perhaps in earlier books in the Max Freeman series.