Night Strike (1990)

Author: Gregory G. Vanhee | Page Count: 375

"Oh, c'mon, Kelly. This is all just a bit maudlin, isn't it?"

Not actually maudlin. Somewhat entertaining, kind of cheesy and a little dated now, but the latter can't be helped. The story follows protagonists J.R. Kelly, a gruff, balding cop turned CIA agent, and Rosemary Hawkins, a national security advisor known for using her feminine wiles and her political savvy to get ahead, while a domestic terror plot is brewing against the president.

That was a very non-spoilerish description despite how much is given away on the damn cover just above and on the back of the book and through very blunt foreshadowing that ends many chapters. The book is a halfway decent thriller that is a conservative wet dream about sexy women, spies, booze and destroying commies with high tech toys in the height of Cold War tensions. Or rather what a liberal thinks is a wet dream of conservatives. It comes off almost as a parody of the spy thriller genre, but seems to be totally serious. It at least doesn't diminish the entertainment value and is the literary equivalent of a summer blockbuster filled with explosions. Partly engaging and then mostly forgotten once it's done, but not necessarily bad.

2½ Old white Blue-Bloods are evil incarnate out of 5

Heat Rises (2011)

Author: Richard Castle | Page Count: 305

"I catch an STD down here, I'll sue till I own the damn city."

Detective Heat starts in the freezing cold investigating the seemingly out of place death of a church pastor in a sex dungeon. What is at first possibly not even a murder will spiral into many conflicts, both political and mortal, that will push Nikki to her physical and mental limits and strain not just her, but her relationships with all those around her including would-be boyfriend Jameson Rook and her beloved police force.

The 3rd book in the Nikki Heat detective series starts off following the formula of the last books, but whether it is actually written better or I've just come to accept it, it felt quite different and less like reading a script from its tie-in show. The mystery was kicked up a notch and was actually mildly surprising, though at times felt less like nuanced mystery and more like just piling on with multiple scenarios playing out hoping the reader will just be overwhelmed with possibilities. This is tempered by the still likeable and relate-able characters. As they should be as they are just mirror images of the swell TV counterparts. Nikki Heat herself is also more interesting as the ordeal will actually force her into vulnerability which has been minimal in previous volumes even if it's clearly just paralleling the TV season on which it is based. But that is part of the joke, I suppose. Very Funny, Mr. Castle.

3½ Good People Have Good Sex out of 5

Naked Heat (2010)

Author: Richard Castle | Page Count: 290

It was to be the last night of her anonymity. She had hoped that, as Mr. Warhol predicted, her fame would only last fifteen minutes and be done, but for the last two weeks, everywhere she went, it was the same. Sometimes stares, sometimes comments, always a pain.

Detective Nikki Heat returns to solve the high profile murder of a gossip writer during a city-wide garbage strike. Compounding the difficulty is the high number of suspects as the tabloid writer had no shortage of prominent enemies and Heat's own high profile which is still flying high in the wake of former ride-along journalist Jameson Rook's cover article detailing her crimefighting. It has caused a rift between the two, but they are forced back together as Rook was profiling the victim at the time of the murder.

The story is more or less the same as before as it reads like a script of its tie-in show which is even pointed out at one point with a joke about commercial breaks and the dialogue is still as snappy as ever though it does focus more on characters than mystery. The mystery is still intriguing though you may find better ones elsewhere. Still perfectly serviceable and like the first book is better when used as intended as a tie-in for the show.

3 Snitches get stitches out of 5

Heat Wave (2009)

Author: Richard Castle | Page Count: 198

 You radiate subtext.

A real estate tycoon falls to his death and it is up to homicide detective Nikki Heat and her ride along magazine writer Jameson Rook to solve the mystery involving thugs, accountants, thieves and spoiled rich people. It's a decent enough mystery, but it reads like a script of it's tie-in show, ABC's Castle. It carries all the same snappy banter and twists of any episode just with the names changed. That can be a strength though as it can give an extra layer into the character of Castle as this meta experiment gives his perspective of the relationship between Castle and Heat's inspiration, Detective Kate Beckett from the show or perhaps what he wishes it was as Heat is mostly congruous with Beckett with some added flare and sexuality.

Separated from the show it is an alright mystery, but like any tie-in should do, it enhances the show and becomes more when used the way it was intended. Everything is written in character right down to the dedication and acknowledgements. Even though it is ghostwritten, ABC is fully committed to the facade as no one outside the show knows who the writer is and the show's creator even lamenting in interviews that Richard Castle worked hard on it and people should stop trying to steal credit from him. Kudos for the commitment.

3½ meta author insertions? out of 5

The Dain Curse (1929)

Author: Dashiell Hammett | Page Count: 240 Pages

"You're old enough to know that everybody except very crazy people and very stupid people suspect themselves now and then- or whenever they happen to think about it- of not being exactly sane. Evidence of goofiness is easily found: the more you dig into yourself, the more you turn up. Nobody's mind could stand the sort of examination you've been giving yours. Going around trying to prove yourself cuckoo! It's a wonder you haven't driven yourself nuts."

The Dain Curse is one of Dashiell Hammett's weaker books, but it's still a pretty great story in its own right. The Continental Op is one of my favorite Hammett characters, and he's used very effectively here, paired up with the quintessential troubled dame with legs that just won't quit. Gabrielle Leggett isn't the easiest character to like for a good chunk of the book, but Hammett does a terrific job developing her over the course of the novel, and she and the Op have some wonderful moments together.

The book is violent, sometimes brutally so, but there's a sweetness to it in spite of that that makes it very charming. Even though Hammett is willing to take the characters to dark places, he doesn't come at them from a cynical point of view. The mystery itself is never as interesting as the characters who are a part of it, but it has a delightfully satisfying and interesting conclusion. If you like detective novels, then any Hammett is worth reading, even if it's not his best stuff.

3.5 ghost biting detectives out of 5.