Once in a while, I get outside my comfort zone and read something I’d normally pass up. I’ve been doing that a lot lately. Some of the stuff? Let’s just leave it as “not my cuppa” and move along without recriminations.
Then there are stories like Shawn Harper’s Matryoshka Blues. This is Shawn’s first novel and the amount – and quality – of work he demonstrates in this book made it shine for me.
The first in what I hope will be many stories in the Average Joe series sizzles with a kind of foul-mouthed, self-deprecating wit. It recaptures the kind of raw, noir detective feel from earlier masters and layers on a complete disregard for their language sensibilities. It’s what Mickey Spillane might have written if he could have dropped a few f-bombs.
No, I’m not saying Shawn’s the new Mickey Spillane and “Average Joe” isn’t Mike Hammer. Yet. If he keeps at it, he might be.
This is a fast read that kept me delighted as I dug out the nuggets of the narrator’s backstory from the barrage of cynical commentary on modern life that drives a relentless push to find the puzzlebox and keep himself out of jail for murder.
Want a clever mystery? Grab a sample of Matryoshka Blues and see if you can resist clicking the buy me link when you get there.
[Transparency: I met Shawn Harper at the Colorado Gold Conference last month. He was second runner up in the simile contest with an entry that referenced “…like a chimpanzee’s fuzzy kumquats without the pleasing after taste” (I’m probably paraphrasing because my memory is not that good.) TBH, that’s the only reason I know about the book – or the author – but I just had to share.]
About the reviewer:
Nathan Lowell has been writing science fiction and fantasy most of his life. He started publishing in 2007 and has no intention of stopping any time soon.
Learn more about Nathan Lowell and his works at http://nathanlowell.com
[Note: You’re seeing more reviews from me because fellow authors aren’t sending reviews of the books they like. If you’re an author, consider the submitting a review about an indie book you loved. The submission guidelines link is at the top of this page.]