Dan Mahoney (1)

I had never heard of this author and picked this book up on a lark. What a pleasant surprise. It is of the police proceedural ilk but kind of different. He gives you a whole lot of detail. Towards the end, it was a bit too much detail but still interesting. New York City police detective Brian McKenna loves his job and is good at it but he also loves his girlfriend who wants him out. He's got at least one more good case that he has to wrap up first. Mahoney has others already out featuring McKenna. I'm going to get another one and give it a go.… (altro)

Synopsis: 'Mahoney's seventh cop thriller pits a couple of wise-guy big-city cops against ETA, the murderous Basque separatist terrorist organization. Once again, Mahoney (The Two Chinatowns) puts Det. Brian McKenna on the trail of killers, kidnappers and some very dangerous perps who thrive on political violence. The resourceful McKenna is teamed up with partner Cisco Sanchez, an insufferable braggart whose methods are almost legal and whose hunches are usually right. When the Spanish ambassador to the United Nations is kidnapped in a bloody shootout in New York City, McKenna and Sanchez are put on the case, which has some high-profile international angles. The Spanish ambassador to France and the rich, beautiful Carmen de la Cruz are also kidnapped by ETA in the north of Spain in a diabolical plot that is anything but normal terrorist activity. Aided by international mystery man Henri Picard and an IRA thug named DuPont, McKenna and Sanchez have to find the kidnapped Spaniard in New York before they can help Carmen. Soon the cops are in Spain, chasing the ETA operatives and their two captives from Basque country in the north to Gibraltar in the south. However, not all their allies can be trusted: McKenna, Sanchez and even ETA are being skillfully manipulated by someone who has a different concept of justice and peace.'
Review: There were parts of this book I skipped completely simply because I don't care what type of weapon someone had. However, the plot was interesting and moved well.… (altro)

Synopsis: On a visit to Toronto, Det. Cisco Sanchez takes his new fiancée, Sue Hsu, to her uncle's restaurant, where she stumbles into a gang kidnapping of a kitchen worker and is killed. Executing swift justice, Sanchez holds off the local cops. Bailed out by his partner, well-connected series regular Brian McKenna (Black and White) and their boss, Sanchez and his fellow NYPDers join forces with a Chinese investigator in Toronto. They soon discover that the Chinese gang responsible for the killing has been hired by the triad to "collect" big money payments from illegal Chinese aliens smuggled into New York and Toronto. Launching an attack in both cities, their investigation sends out shock waves far and wide as bodies pile up and the husband and wife triad enforcement team known as Boris and Natasha are captured in Toronto. The couple turn informer to protect their family, but the cops don't count on meeting up with Murray Don't Worry—a real-life New York City lawyer who almost steals the book. Murray plays the cops like a Stradivarius while matchmaking between his secretary/niece and Sanchez. When the team finally targets Johnny Eng, the dragon head of the triad (and another Murray client) the action really picks up. McKenna takes a back seat in this outing as Sanchez runs the show, with a little help from his friends. Mahoney's characters are always solid, and this tale is almost a primer on Chinese community dynamics. He pulls no punches and speeds to a perfect ending. (Excerpt from Fiction Book Review).
Review: Although it dragged at times, this was an interesting story with a relatively satisfying ending.… (altro)

The author makes a huge mistake right off the bat. I was listening to this book, and the two major protagonists are both named McKenna: Brian and Tommy. He then proceeds to compound the error by talking about each not by given name, but rather by patronymic. You really have to keep your head wrapped around this in order not to get confused. A quick look at Amazon reveals that the names are even spelled the same, although, in the author’s defense, Tommy McKenna is a real NYPD detective of some note. Whatever.

A man and woman are discovered dead near the cloisters, she the daughter of a wealthy, politically connected man, Brian is assigned as lead detective on the case even as they discover another similar set of murders that had haunted the other McKenna, Tommy. As the investigation proceeds, it becomes apparent the detectives are looking for two serial killers who are engaged in the production of snuff films. The chase leads all over the country in addition to Costa Rica, Thailand, Burma, and Barcelona.

It’s a well-done police procedural with lots of interesting investigatory detail and I do really hope (although I sincerely doubt) that the different police agencies here and abroad really do cooperate and get along and are all such nice guys as described in the book..… (altro)