About
Reviews
Search
Submit
Home

Mystery Books for Sale

[ Home ]
[ About | Reviews | Search | Submit ]


  

HARDSCRABBLE ROAD
by Jane Haddam
St Martin's Minotaur, April 2006
320 pages
$24.95
ISBN: 0312353731


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

There is a lot of exposition involved in Jane Haddam's latest novel featuring Armenian American detective Gregor Demarkian. There are too many characters introduced before Demarkian even makes his first appearance.

Each character has a story related to a controversial radio talkshow host by the name of Drew Harrigan. This man influences many of the characters in so many ways. Some see him as a savior, others as their meal tickets. The point is that many people listen to his rhetoric and diatribes thinking that he is always right and can do no wrong.

When Drew is arrested for driving under the influence and possessing illegal prescription drugs, some people's perception of him change as they decide whether to stick with him or move on.

Harrigan voluntarily signs himself into a detoxification clinic after having posted bail following his arrest. For the next 60 days he will remain incommunicado at an undisclosed location, leaving everyone in his life to fend for themselves -- even though people need to talk to him.

Harrigan had accused a homeless man of being complicit in getting him the drugs and now Sherman Markey is a wanted man. Markey has sued the radio personality in retaliation for the drug accusation and now there is panic everywhere. Gregor Demarkian is hired to find the homeless man both to be able to protect him from people who might want to kill him and to get to the bottom of things.

Demarkian realizes that he does not have the whole story and that something else is going on. Unfortunately, by the time everything is said and done, few readers are going to care.

It took me a while to finish this novel even though the book is only 312 pages long. Almost every single character had something to say and wouldn't shut up until they has made their point. The novel is peppered with too many speeches that are leftist, liberal, conservative, controversial or even pedantic. There was always something. The book's plot was almost secondary, bringing the novel to an unsatisfying and unconvincing conclusion.

As much as I respect Jane Haddam's writings, this book just annoyed me with all the irrelevant conversations that did little to propel the story forward. Don't let this book deter you from the Gregor Demarkian series. There are some better ones than this one.

Reviewed by Angel L. Soto, June 2006

[ Top ]


QUICK SEARCH:

 

Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


[ About | Reviews | Search | Submit ]
[ Home ]