Clean Win

 

Laura Mosby is like a lot of young women, working in a job she doesn't like, looking for a way out, and doing her best to enjoy her privacy. When she dies a violent death at the hands of an intruder, it's at first brushed off as a standard homicide. But when Lieutenant Santiago, the supervising detective, comes across evidence linking her death to a local politician, he begins to see the faint threads of a much nastier scheme. Desperate to shield his people from potential harm, he turns to Sam Quinton, full-time gym owner and part-time private investigator, to help solve Laura's murder and help the police department evade the wrath of City Hall.

my review...

This is the first book I have read by Kevin Doyle. I most certainly don’t know why I haven’t read more. I had even put a couple of them on my TBR list but hadn’t gotten around to reading them. I should have been reading his Sam Quinton mysteries long ago.

This is just the sort of P.I. mystery story I like. I really enjoy a story where the cops (or at least some of them) can get along with a private investigator, even engage their help. I’m very tired of the P.I. who gets beat up or threatened by the cops all the time. Sam was a pro-wrestler before, called the Blond Bomber. Sounds hilarious, but it sure works as a character. I like his sarcastic, smart-ass, remarks and attitude. Maybe I can relate to him :) This time Detective Santiago contacts Sam about a very delicate problem. The murder wasn’t delicate, but the possible suspect could be a touchy subject.

This is one of those stories that catch you from the beginning. I’m not even sure how to describe what I mean. Is it the writing or is it the story? Whatever the snare was, it worked. This is one I rarely put down.

I must say I did find some errors here. Only a few compared to most books nowadays. Odd what we accept anymore. But the few typos or wrong words I did find were not enough to interrupt my reading flow, and I’m picky. So, what we have is a great story, well-written, and a character I already want to read more about.

 

read an excerpt...

We sat there for another minute or two before I prodded the cop. “Laura Mosby.”

“Right.” Santiago sat a little straighter, as if pulling himself back on track. “We’ve got a possible suspect.”

“From what the local news has reported, you’ve had more than one possible suspect.”

Santiago nodded. “A former boyfriend, another even more former boyfriend, and a low-rent cousin who lives out of state.”

“But?”

“But they were all dead ends. And now we’ve got someone new to look at.”

“Which I’m guessing has something to do with why you’re slumming enough to visit me this morning,” I said. “So why not get to it. Who’s the new favorite?”

Santiago looked away as he pressed his hands flat on his thighs. Despite our not-so-hot relationship, I decided to give him the time he needed.

He looked back my way, his expression as calm and controlled as I’d ever seen him.

“Bob Marlow,” he said, so quietly I almost missed it.

I blinked a couple of times, processing the name.

“Bob Marlow,” I repeated a few seconds later.

“Yeah,” Santiago said, giving me half a nod.

“As in Mayor Bob Marlow?”

Only a quarter of a nod this time, if that. “Yeah.”

“As in recently-announced candidate for governor Bob Marlow?”

No comment this time, except for Santiago giving me a dead-level stare.

“Well, shit,” I said.

“Yeah,” Santiago said.  

about Kevin R. Doyle...

 

A high-school teacher, former college instructor, and fiction writer, Kevin R. Doyle is the author of numerous short horror stories. He’s also written three crime thrillers, The Group, When You Have to Go There, and And the Devil Walks Away, and one horror novel, The Litter. In the last few years, he’s begun working on the Sam Quinton private eye series, published by Camel Press. The first Quinton book, Squatter’s Rights, was nominated for the 2021 Shamus award for Best First PI Novel.  The second book, Heel Turn, was released in March of 2021, while the third in the series, Double Frame, came out in March of 2022. The fourth Sam Quinton book, Clean Win, will be released in March of 2023.

 Web site: kevindoylefiction.com

Facebook: facebook.com/kevindoylfiction

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6473241.Kevin_R_Doyle

 

Amazon buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Clean-Win-Quinton-Mystery-Book-ebook/dp/B0BN6X7WNW/

 

 

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