Thank you for stopping by I'm thrilled to be one of the stops on the blog tour for Needle Song by Russell Day and sharing my review. First of all though let's take a look at the description for the book...
Spending the night with a beautiful woman would be a good alibi, if the body in the next room wasn't her husband.
Doc Slidesmith has a habit of knowing things he shouldn’t. He knows the woman Chris Rudjer meets online is married. He knows the adult fun she’s looking for is likely to be short lived. And when her husband’s killed, he knows Chris Rudjer didn’t do it.
Only trouble is the police disagree and no one wants to waste time investigating an open and shut case.
No one except Doc.
Using lies, blackmail and a loaded pack of Tarot cards, Doc sets about looking for the truth - but the more truth he finds, the less he thinks his friend is going to like it.
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I really enjoyed this unusual and pretty addictive book along with an intriguing set of characters that will easily pull you into the story. The tarot reading was an interesting part of the story and I loved how it was explored as Doc sets out to solve the crime. Even though quite a large portion of the story is told from Yakky's perspective you really get a feel for Doc's character. Especially his determination when trying to discover all the little secrets that the people close to the victim may be hiding.
Needle Song is essentially a mystery, one that is well written and if you are anything like me it will keep you turning those pages until it is solved. The pace is punchy and moves quickly with an enigmatic character in Doc leading his own investigation. To create a good balance you also have Yakky's character where the reader gets to hear his inner thoughts along with seeing the various situations play out. The whole story builds up the tension until the finale where we get the group of suspects together to finally discover the truth. This was a brilliant nod to the more old fashioned style mysteries and I'm sure that most people will love and appreciate this style of reveal.
I'm already looking forward to the next book!
Four stars from me!
With thanks to Emma and Fahrenheit Press for my copy.
Although he only writes crime fiction Russ doesn’t consider his work restricted. ‘As long as there have been people there has been crime, as long as there are people there will be crime.’ That attitude leaves a lot of scope for settings and characters. One of the first short stories he had published, The Second Rat and the Automatic Nun, was a double-cross story set in a world where the church had taken over policing. In his first novel, Needle Song, an amateur detective employs logic, psychology and a loaded pack of tarot cards to investigate a death.
Russ often tells people he seldom smiles due to nerve damage, sustained when his jaw was broken. In fact, this is a total fabrication and his family will tell you he’s has always been a miserable bastard.
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