Layered, noirish tale exposing the tangled pasts of two dirty cops from Beantown. One, the big shot, is entrenched in corruption and the abuse of power. The other, with a more centered compass, only dripped his toe in once—but it followed him to his attempt at a new life up Andover way. as a real estate salesman, threatening his life and family.
Frank Chase, the hero of this yarn, married the ex of Rupert Goetz and is raising Goetz’s son. An uncomfortable state of affairs, but they try to make it something better than work. Goetz continues to mete out abuse in Boston pulling the strings on his home turf and keeping tentacles wrapped around his “second family” up north.
This is a more contemporary book than most of the Black Gat series, first published in hardcover in 1981. As such, the sex is more nuanced, as is the violence. The book went on to earn a CWA Silver Dagger Nominee that same year. It’s easy to understand why. Coburn is a terrific writer, and I’m grateful Stark House has reissued this title. Coburn unfurls the history of his two main characters and their orbits seamlessly while moving the narrative forward in satisfying strides. There is never a dull moment. The story is told largely by its strong characters spouting frank dialogue, revealing the roots of their perspectives and how it guides their present slant. Even the secondary cast is well-drawn and engaging, from the local (Andover) cop to the top-dog antagonist who ultimately is forced out of the shadows to pull a few string of his own.
Although Coburn was a bestselling author during his peak crime fiction writing years, his books have largely gone out of print. If the others were as well-conceived and delivered as this one, let’s hope Stark House will keep ‘em coming.
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