Customer Reviews

Too Beautiful to Die (Blades Overstreet Mystery)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Fans of Glenville Lovell and/or mysteries are in for a treat with his latest book, TOO BEAUTIFUL TO DIE. True to the form of most whodunit novels, movies, and other pieces showcasing the life of a private detective, Lovell definitely delivers! TOO BEAUTIFUL TO DIE is an exciting, action-packed, visually descriptive, fast-moving, and witty tale that kept me on the edge of my seat.

Formerly a New York City policeman, Blades Overstreet is at odds with the NYPD, awaiting a settlement from the city, and in a battle with himself over his separation from his wife. Blades finds himself caught up in issues surrounding his wife, his family; specifically his anger over being shot and wounded by a white police officer during an undercover operation gone bad. Convinced that the system is out to get him when the other cop is cleared of all wrongdoings and the shooting is determined an accident, Blades resigns from the Force and loses himself in bitterness and is set on revenge. As a result, his wife leaves him and in the midst of trying to get her back, he hears from Jimmie, the white cab driver that saved his life after the shooting. Blades feels indebted to Jimmie because he rescued Blades from the street after he had been shot and took him to the hospital, thus saving his life and becoming a friend.

At the request of Precious, a famous soap opera actress, Jimmie has summoned Blades to help Precious find her father. Uninterested in the position, Blades disregards his gut feelings on the case and accepts it after pressure from Jimmie. He accompanies Precious to meet an informant who supposedly has information about her father. She's never known her father, doesn't know who he is or what he looks like, and it seems odd that out of the blue someone has called her claiming to have information. What happens when the informant is found dead...and is later revealed to be an FBI agent? The NYPD come looking for Blades as a suspect. More drama unfolds as Blades becomes involved with Precious and continues on his quest to find her father. On the run for his life, he must find out who is setting him up while at the same time trying to stay clear of the authorities.

TOO BEAUTIFUL TO DIE is mystery writing at its best, and Lovell not only commands your attention as the story unravels, but he also tells it in a literary tone that strokes the imagination and emotions of the reader. I was thoroughly surprised that I loved this book so much because it's told in a very strong narrative format, which I normally don't care for in books. Lovell not only pulls it off, he does it well! The ending is absolutely breath taking and it left me applauding Lovell and setting out on a mission to pick up his earlier works. Though Lovell did an excellent job of visually displaying the happenings in the book, I'd love to see it on the big screen. Additionally, I look forward to the continuation of the Blades Overstreet character and further mysteries by Lovell.

Reviewed by Tee C. Royal
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

WHOA!!!!!This is my expression from reading this action packed novel full of breath-taking twists and turns that leave you mentally aroused as well as stimulated. Lovell has a penchant for writing Mysteries. He has taken this novel and intermingled romance with the street life of crime and the underworld corruption in governmwnt and Law enforcement at large. I was moved by his introduction of Blades, the ex-cop who refuses to accept his fate of being accidentally fired upon by one of his own. Just when I thought the story could not evoke any more emotion it heightened my awareness of the struggles Blades is trying to overcome while dealing with his quest for the TRUTH.
I would highly recommend this book to ALL persons in Law Enforcement and to anyoe in the general literary world who can appreciate the journey this writer takes you on in this beatifully crafted novel. I look forward to more from Blades and can't wait to see what Lovell will create for his next novel.

Three years may have passed, but African-American Blades Overstreet remains bitter over the incident that nearly cost him his life and ultimately did cost him his wife. During a bust, an undercover white cop "accidentally" shot police officer Blades, who felt it was a deliberate effort to eliminate a black cop. The brass told him to shut up so he quit and sued. The acrimonious aftertaste and avenging obsession over the subsequent two years led to his wife Anais leaving him to go to California.

Jimmy Lucas once saved Blades' life so he now asks a big favor of Blades. Jimmy wants Blades to help his "Precious" find her long lost father. Warning Jimmy that the debt is now paid, Blades begins making inquiries only he finds a murdered FBI agent during his investigation. Already detested by the NYPD brass and most of its rank and file for failing to live up to its blue color code, Blades finds federal and local law enforcement want to hang his black butt with the crime. He knows he needs to uncover with 200 proof evidence the identity of the real culprit o he will find himself behind bars.

Though containing a powerful condemnation of racism, this exciting urban noir is clearly for those in the audience who appreciate macho males bragging about sexual conquests in between acts of violence. So the question begs itself as to why this suburban female reviewer kept reading in spite of feeling like an outsider. Somehow Blades hooks the reader as an underdog David who the audience follows in hopes he wins the day against entrenched Goliath bureaucracies and regains his love. This work is clearly for specified sub-genre fans that will enjoy Blade's New York City joy ride.

Harriet Klausner

Blades Overstreet is an ex cop turned private detective asked to do a favor for a friend who gets more than he can handle in this stirring crime novel. Overstreet is hired by Precious to look for her lost father but instead he finds and F.B.I. agent dead, this also leads to a black congress woman, who has a few skelletons of her own and a child pornography ring which prey on illegal immigrants.
This novel is good because Lovell shows you New York City for the rough, hardcore town it is. Many of the novel's scenes are set in Brooklyn, Harlem and the Bronx. The story is full of crooked cops, F.B.I. agents and hustlers whose loyality changes when the wind blows.Blades rolls with his blended family and the burden of being a bi racial male. A father who is an ex Panther and a brother who suffers from drug abuse. Lovell shows off his carribean culture, you can see the clothes, taste the food and listen to the music in his words. The action holds your attention. What makes Blades appealing is that he is a good guy with some shades of darkness to him.

Reviewed by
Erren

This past year I decided to take a deeper look at the crime fiction genre. After reading Glenville Lovell's Too Beautiful to Die I've fallen in love with it. At first I thought it was my penchant for bad guys gone good with harboring bad tendency issues that drew me into detective novels. You know the Axel Foley, Shaft, or Easy Rowlins kind of fellow. While reading this book for the second time, however, I found brilliance to Lovell's work and a greater respect for the genre.
Lovell builds a bombshell of a who-done-it, and at the same time enlightens the reader about Caribbean American Immigration History, a subject matter that hasn't gotten the attention it deserves.
Blades Overstreet, a black ex-NYPD cop obligates himself to a gorgeous soap star, appropriately named Precious, as a favor to Jimmy Lucas, the man who had saved his life. Precious wants to know the identity of her father and someone is willing to tell her who he is for $50,000, so Blades offers his protective services to assist her with this transaction. When they both find their contact, who unbeknownst to them is an ex-FBI agent, dead in his apartment, Blades realizes that this small favor has turned into one huge mess. And if things couldn't get worse for Blades, Precious is found dead in his apartment. How will Blades clear his name? Who killed Precious and why? Most importantly, who was Precious father?
This novel will have you up all night trying to get to the truth. You will not skip to the back of the book to find out, because each chapter is so interwoven into the end and so well written you will not want to miss a clue or a thought. Blades is the hero of the twenty-first century, and I hope they make this novel into a movie. Look what Devil in a Blue Dress did for Walter Mosley's Easy Rowlins.
I recommend this book to my brother, my daddy, and any man, who shies from reading. I recommend this book to any woman wanting to know the intricacies of the African-American male psyche. I recommend this book to anyone who just wants a really good read. This book is off the chisel.
Too Beautiful... receives 5 pens because it is too wonderful for words. It is an instant classic. The way Lovell melts landscape into philosophy is superb. I must have this in hardback, so Lovell can get more cheddar. He deserves it.

Dee Y. Stewart
R.E.A.L. Reviewers

Blades Overstreet, a black man with a major attitude, has been an ex-cop for a few years after being "accidentally" shot by a white police officer while he was working undercover. While still being angry at the police department and while trying to reconcile with his wife, he is asked from his friend and life-saver, Jimmy to assist a lady named Precious. Her desire is to find out whom her father is which is a secret that has been kept from her for reasons unknown to her. Reluctant at first, Blades eventually decides to help out Precious, more for the fact that he found himself attracted to her. Unfortunately for Blades, getting involved with Precious is going to make his life turn into a nightmare because, one minute, he's searching for her lost father and, the next, he's a murder suspect!

Glenville Lovell tells a very enjoyable and suspenseful mystery that will keep you guessing and wondering until the end. Lovell's Blades Overstreet character kept the book interesting as well as the pages turning since the reader will definitely want to find out what is really going on, why are people getting murdered, and why is someone determined to make Blades take the fall.

With mysteries and suspense books by African American authors being few and far between, Too Beautiful To Die is a welcome addition and a welcome change of pace.

Lovell has outdone himself in this action-packed, suspense-filled, emotionally-charged new novel - "TO BEAUTIFUL TO DIE". This book thoroughly captivates the reader from beginning to end. It introduces us to a new hero - "Blades Overstreet", the streetwise ex-cop with an attitude and soft-heart. This book is a great "whodunit" filled with macho images but, also sensually and sexually stimulating. "Blades" is the quintessential angry, macho male who's full of wit but, also longs for the return of his woman. Female readers will love this book. Blades' character is just the right mixture of scary but lovable. At home with the violence of the street, yet vulnerable to perceived obligations to family and friends. The reader feels right at home with the story, the characters and the seting. This is everyday living in the "neighborhood". This book makes the reader feel as if he/she is right in the middle of all the action. Fantastic! I can't wait for the next "Blades Overstreet" story. I'd love to see this on film.

I've read Glenville Lovell's first two literary novels, both of which will tweak your senses and your mind, so with the publication of his third book, I can say that he's become one of my favorite new writers; thus, my pleasure in loving and recommending his stylish new noir, Too Beautiful to Die, without reservation.

Lovell is both craftsman and artist. The craftsman in him offers a plot-driven novel with incisive and often humorous dialogue and an intriguing and fully-developed character in Blades Overstreet. This ex-detective is simultaneously streetwise and vulnerable, full of wit, brooding, doused with ample levels of testosterone, yet blessed with tender thoughts of love and longing and sensuality, and not without a measure of kick-ass sarcasm tossed into his psychological mix. And, he has his demons, too. His meditations on family dynamics, intra-racial color bias, and racial politics are honest and pointed. The story moves along at a fast pace with compelling chapter endings (so much so that I found myself leaving only four hours for a night's sleep because I was busy turning pages). Blades Overstreet is a man that I'd like to meet again (and soon).

If you like stories of Everyman against Everything, you'll like Too Beautiful to Die. If you like stories in which setting, too, is a character, check out Lovell's Brooklyn in this book. For excerpts of all three novels (Fire in the Cane and Song of Night are the others) and more about the author, check out Lovell's web site at glenvillelovell.com.

Too Beautiful to Die by Glenville Lovell, was a very captivating book. It is the story of Blades Overstreet an Ex-Cop turned Music Store Owner who finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation.

Blades resigned from the Police Force after being shot by a fellow officer(who is white) who says it was an accident. Blades does not buy the story and is suing the Department and the City because of the shooting. The anger that he feels toward the Cop who shot him and the Department causes his wife to leave him.

Blades who was saved by a White Taxi Cab driver feels indebted to Jimmie and against his better judgement gets involved with Precious a Soap Opera star in her search for her long loss father. This search finds unexpected people dead and Blades in a world of trouble. In the midst of the murder investigation Blades is trying to reconciliate with his wife and make peace with his White Brother and Sister.

This book is full of twists and turns and will keep you on the edge of your seat. I finished the book in one day because I just couldn't put it down. This was the first book I've read by Glenville Lovell but I am going out to purchase his first two. I look forward to seeing Blades Overstreet real soon!!!!!

i feel in love with this book when i read it i read it from cover to cover & i rarely do that with a book but it had me from page one! best book ever i lost it so im buying it again & reading it again! i would recommend you buy if you havent already! :)