Rock & Roll Homicide
R.J. McDonnell
Kileena Publishing
Hardcover
ISBN 978-0-9814914-1-7
$25.95
Admit it, when you were a teenager, you wanted to be a rock star, or if you’re a woman, you wanted to date a guy who was in a band. The ugliest guy in the world can get a date if he’s a drummer or a lead singer. If you don’t believe me, I have two words for you: Mick Jagger. There’s just something about musicians that surpasses even the captain of the football team in terms of hotness.
While I will not classify myself as a former groupie under any circumstances, I do fondly remember a lot of Saturday nights in my college years spent at a bar called Beethoven’s in Davenport, Iowa. The band that played there was called Lynn Allen and the lead singer (hi, Billy!) had a sexy, gravelly voice that lent itself well to cover tunes by Loverboy and John Cougar. (I realize I just gave myself away—yes, it was the 80’s and I’m past the big 4-0.)
But I’m not too old to appreciate a good rocker story, and McDonnell delivers it. The lead singer of an up and coming band gets blown away by his own music when his headphones explode during a recording session. (Sorry. I know that was bad, but I couldn’t resist.) His widow is the police’s prime suspect, so she quickly hires a private investigator to dig deeper into her husband’s murder. The PI is Jason Duffy, himself a former musician and the son of a cop. Convinced of the widow’s innocence, Jason soon learns that the band’s record company has ties to the Russian mafia, and the remaining band members aren’t squeaky clean either.
It’s a great murder mystery. I had a few problems with the editing—for example, when you “peek” into a kitchen, it’s not spelled “peak” but that’s just me, I’m picky about that kind of thing. That said, the description is witty, as in “a toupee that probably makes squirrels horny.” You gotta love that. The transitions are not always smooth—in some places it seems a little choppy, but it’s not a major issue. This is a novel I highly recommend, especially if you’ve got fun memories of a Beethoven’s in your past.
Copyright Ⓒ2009 Marlene Pyle