Customer Reviews

Moonlight Falls

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It takes serious balls to begin a book with your protagonist deliberately putting a bullet into his own head, but that's exactly how Vincent Zandri kicks off his high-octane new thriller Moonlight Falls. Richard "Dick" Moonlight, you see, is not your typical protagonist. In fact, he's seriously screwed up. As one character tells him, "You fell off the tree of f'd-up-weird and slammed every branch on the way down." F'd-up-weird notwithstanding, it's the fragment of .22 bullet left in his brain following his book opening suicide attempt that forces Moonlight's retirement from the Albany police department.

Unable to commit to a new job because the placement of the bullet fragment leaves him prone to untimely blackouts and seizures, not to mention serious lapses in judgment, Moonlight finds himself being called upon by his former partner to serve as an outside investigator on cases that need a discrete, but 'official', rubber stamping in order to close them... for a fee, of course.

This arrangement becomes a problem when he's called to the scene of the apparent suicide of Scarlet Montana, wife of his ex-boss Chief of Detectives Jake Montana. Unlike previous callouts, Moonlight can't bring himself to rubber stamp suicide as the cause of death, collect his under the table fee and be done with it. The sticking point? Not only was Moonlight having an affair with her, but he had been with her only hours before her death. What's more, given his spotty memory - not to mention the bloody, scratched up hands he doesn't remember acquiring - he honestly doesn't know if he could have killed her. But he's determined to find out what really happened to Scarlet, no matter what the consequences to himself may be.

What unfolds over the course of his investigation provides a non-stop, tension filled ride for the reader; one that includes a mysterious albino, Fugitive-esque pursuit by authorities, grave robbing, a police conspiracy, and a black market organ harvesting ring. There is so much going on that even the most accomplished reader of mysteries and thrillers will be hard pressed to figure out in advance what really happened, as Moonlight Falls delivers twists and swerves right up until the final chapter, even after having seemingly revealed the answer to the mystery.

Did Scarlet Montana commit suicide or was she brutally murdered? This is the mystery that Richard Moonlight, ex-Albany Police Department Detective and budding massage therapist must solve, especially since he has been accused of her murder. To make matters worse, he was Scarlett's lover and was with her near the time of her death. He also has a self-inflicted bullet fragment in his brain that may dislodge at any moment and cause his own death. With Moonlight Falls, Vincent Zandri has crafted a fast-moving, tightly woven whodunit that will keep you guessing how Scarlet actually died up until the very last page. The characters, especially Moonlight, are finely drawn and eminently believable, and his picture-perfect descriptions of Albany will make you feel as if you're experiencing all of the action yourself. This is a must read for lovers of mysteries and thrillers. I would love to see a Moonlight series!

If you like a down and dirty read, you can't go much lower than Vincent Zandri on the fiction shelf. Killers and cops play cat and mouse in this shocking quick-pace narrative. To part-time dick, "Richard" Moonlight, human decency is chump change - as rare as an albino man's left kidney. Zandri sets the bar low in gritty Albany, NY, delivering a sordid but altogether riveting page turner.

If you are a mystery/thriller lover then this book is definitely one you want to read! As it's described, it's a Hitchcock styled writing and it's pure talent from Vincent Zandri. I am happy that I had the opportunity to be a part of this blog tour and read into Richard Moonlight's story!

Zandri created a story that is a page turner, edge-of-seat thriller that pulls you in and doesn't let you go until you've become a part of the detectives and solve the mystery. It's packed full of gasping suspense and a riveting conclusion that will leave you with your jaw dropped and your heart pumping!

I highly recommend that you grab a copy of this fast past, thrilling suspense novel by an author who has a great talent! 4 stars and two thumbs up!

This was a fast-paced novel with lots of twists and turns. If I had one small complaint, it was that it almost had too many twists. That was probably just me. It did stick with me long after I finished reading. I would certainly recommend this!

Moonlight Falls by Vincent Zandri is a fabulous fast-paced thriller that will take you on the thrill-ride of your life!

It took me longer to read this book that it would most because I kept finding myself struck by his writing and had to go back and re-read lines that were just amazing! I read a lot! And I do enjoy most of what I read, and I read a lot of good stuff and find a lot of good authors, but when the exceptional comes along, it's sort of like brain-candy for me. I find myself having to go back and re-read a lot just because the writing is stunning! That was the case for me with this book. And, I actually already knew that about Vincent's writing but I think I actually let myself forget just how amazingly talented he is. He can do things with words that just blow me away! He is definitely one of the best thriller writers out there today, if not one of the best writers, period.

Dick Moonlight is a new favorite character of mine now! I'm a sucker for a good character-driven series and I love this fabulous character. I'm looking forward to hopefully much more to come!

I VERY highly recommend this book! The writing is amazing! The story hooked me from the very start and I could not put the book down! It's full of mystery and suspense. You're just as much in the dark as Dick Moonlight is, and it's full of twists, turns and surprises, many of which you will not see coming.

Moonlight Falls opens with a bang, actually it is a suicide attempt. This failed attempt is the reason for the main character Richard (Dick) Moonlight's problems which might include loss of memory. Taking an idea that has been tried before Mr Zandri gives it a few extra twists to keep it fresh. Where many mystery writer place their stories in large cities or exotic locals this one takes place in a rainy few days in Albany N.Y. Just when things begin to fall in place we get one more twist. It was well written and I am looking forward to more from this author.

Vincent Zandri is just one of those men who has the capacity of taking the English language and manipulating it into a tongue that is mesmorizing. He creates characters, stories and worlds that simply speak for themselves. Read Moonlight Falls for yourself and see. Prepare to be as crazy about Zandri's books as Moonlight is over his lover. It's a dangerous, unhealthy relationship. One you'll never be able to walk away from, willingly.

Bri Clark

PS when you need your next fix of Moonlight you'll find it in the shortie Moonlight Mafia.

Moonlight Falls is a rare page-turner in a sea of mediocre books with predicable plot lines and lifeless characters. You won't find this to be true with Zandri's terrific thriller. Written in the first person, noir-style, Zandri keeps things interesting with snappy dialogue, great characterizations and clever plot twists. He differentiates his interrogations with the FBI by using first-person present-tense, a nice diversion for the reader. Overall, the writing is quick and smart--the sure sign of a bestseller. I highly recommend this book.

After many weeks of having Moonlight Falls in my possesion, I was finally able to sit and read it more than a chapter at a time, while on vacation. It's necessary too, as this is not a book that you want to put down and doing so gave me grief. I wanted to know who did it and why, and how, and what was really going on. Because this book is full of twists and turns and little things that matter and big ones that lead you down the wrong road. It makes you backtrack and rethink what you think you know. And what you really don't know. And then you change your mind about what you think is really going on. This is suspense the way it was meant to be written, as far as I am concerned. Not a bunch of blood and gore, but a realy story, with real people and a realy mystery.

Living here in the Albany area it was fun trying to figure out where they were, who was really who (not sure I have them all yet) and being able to picture the actual places in my mind was a bouns. (Although- do we really have a 7-11? And after all my time spent in the Albany airport waiting for my daughters plane from L.A., where are they hiding a skybar you don't need a ticket to get to?)

I am really curious to know Moonlights future, his fate. But maybe not, since I would feel like I would have to attend his funeral if the bullet finally kills him.