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Deadman is another virtuoso performance from a master crime novelist. This time, Mulheisen is headed out of town, hot on the trail of Helen Sedlacek, who skipped out with a truckload of stolen cash after chopping down mob boss Carmine Busoni with a double-barreled twelve-gauge shotgun. A man fitting the description of Joe Service -- Helen's amour and Mulheisen's nemesis -- has turned up in a Butte hospital in a coma, having been shot in the face at close range. Mario Soper, a Mafia assassin with a contract on Joe, has turned up dead in a Montana irrigation ditch. But where is Helen -- and the money? Who killed Mario -- and who shot Joe? Deadman is a gritty, pulse-pounding wild-goose chase that confirms once again Jackson's place at the top tier of American mystery writers.
272 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 1994
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About the author
Jon A. Jackson
22 books18 followersJon A. Jackson grew up in northern Michigan and Detroit and currently lives in Missoula, Montana.
His middle initial A is for Anthony.
His middle initial A is for Anthony.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
June 22, 2019
This is the fifth of the ten books by Jon A Jackson featuring Detroit Detective Sergeant Mulheisen and Mulheisen's nemesis, mob enforcer, Joe Service. And it remains my favorite book in an excellent series.
At the end of the previous book, Hit on the House: Detective Sergeant Mulheisen Mysteries, a Detroit mobster was killed and a vast amount of mob money went missing. While other threads in the book were neatly tied off, the murder was not solved and the money was not found. Mulheisen suspects that Helen Sedlacek, the daughter of another murdered mobster, may have revenged her father's death by killing the mobster whom she blames for his death. But Helen is in the wind, as is the mysterious Joe Service.
Deadman opens with Service driving down I-90, just outside of Butte, Montana, enjoying a gorgeous fall day. But the day turns decidedly ugly when Joe stops to help a man in trouble and is shot and left for dead by the side of the road. Miraculously, he somehow survives and winds up in a Butte hospital in a coma and unable to communicate. Meanwhile, Helen waits in the cabin that she and Joe are sharing out in the mountains. When found, Joe had no identification and so he is initially listed on the hospital's roster as "Deadman."
An attractive young nurse is smitten with Joe and sees to his care, something that involves some interesting sponge baths. Meanwhile, Helen finally realizes what has happened. She begins sending cashier's checks to the hospital to pay for Joe's care, but realizes that the bad guys are on their trail and begins taking steps to protect herself. Mulheisen also picks up the scent and winds up in Montana to investigate, at which point the story really takes off.
A city boy from Detroit, Mulheisen is a fish out of water in Montana and it's great fun watching him interact with the locals. The book is populated by a number of great, vividly-imagined characters, and it moves at just the right pace from the opening scene to a brilliant climax. It's a great read, and it's hard to imagine that there's any fan of crime fiction who would not enjoy this book.
At the end of the previous book, Hit on the House: Detective Sergeant Mulheisen Mysteries, a Detroit mobster was killed and a vast amount of mob money went missing. While other threads in the book were neatly tied off, the murder was not solved and the money was not found. Mulheisen suspects that Helen Sedlacek, the daughter of another murdered mobster, may have revenged her father's death by killing the mobster whom she blames for his death. But Helen is in the wind, as is the mysterious Joe Service.
Deadman opens with Service driving down I-90, just outside of Butte, Montana, enjoying a gorgeous fall day. But the day turns decidedly ugly when Joe stops to help a man in trouble and is shot and left for dead by the side of the road. Miraculously, he somehow survives and winds up in a Butte hospital in a coma and unable to communicate. Meanwhile, Helen waits in the cabin that she and Joe are sharing out in the mountains. When found, Joe had no identification and so he is initially listed on the hospital's roster as "Deadman."
An attractive young nurse is smitten with Joe and sees to his care, something that involves some interesting sponge baths. Meanwhile, Helen finally realizes what has happened. She begins sending cashier's checks to the hospital to pay for Joe's care, but realizes that the bad guys are on their trail and begins taking steps to protect herself. Mulheisen also picks up the scent and winds up in Montana to investigate, at which point the story really takes off.
A city boy from Detroit, Mulheisen is a fish out of water in Montana and it's great fun watching him interact with the locals. The book is populated by a number of great, vividly-imagined characters, and it moves at just the right pace from the opening scene to a brilliant climax. It's a great read, and it's hard to imagine that there's any fan of crime fiction who would not enjoy this book.
June 11, 2018
3 cheers to me for finding Mulheisen! A terrific character. Vivid prose. The Montana setting was convincing. My hope is that the author takes Mul back to Montana. Regardless, colour this reader hooked on Mul.
July 28, 2015
This copy is signed by the author.
February 9, 2014
Well, well, well. What have we here? A book with a protagonist named Fang? How droll. lol.
I loved this little book, and as always when I discover a new author (thanks, JT,) I wonder how he has escaped me for what turns out to be all these years. Jackson's Fang Mulheisen is a man on a mission, looking for Detroit killers in the wilds of western Montana. Jackson has a wonderful ear, and while the plot seems a little contrived, who cares? We get the treat of seeing multiple viewpoints, vivid description, and the goings-on of the police procedural. It's a fun ride, with the good guys getting the bad guys, the bad guys getting the bad guys, and some very sexy ladies getting, well, in on the fun.
Jackson's love of jazz ("Red" Garland, indeed,) birds, and the Montana landscape shine through, and you can do a lot worse that spend a day with Fang and the crew.
4 Stars.
I loved this little book, and as always when I discover a new author (thanks, JT,) I wonder how he has escaped me for what turns out to be all these years. Jackson's Fang Mulheisen is a man on a mission, looking for Detroit killers in the wilds of western Montana. Jackson has a wonderful ear, and while the plot seems a little contrived, who cares? We get the treat of seeing multiple viewpoints, vivid description, and the goings-on of the police procedural. It's a fun ride, with the good guys getting the bad guys, the bad guys getting the bad guys, and some very sexy ladies getting, well, in on the fun.
Jackson's love of jazz ("Red" Garland, indeed,) birds, and the Montana landscape shine through, and you can do a lot worse that spend a day with Fang and the crew.
4 Stars.
August 9, 2011
I have not read Jackson in awhile, so while in Butte for business I luckily had time to stop off at the indie bookstoe in town, Books & Books. A really great selection of local, MT, NAI, and Western titles, as well as all kinds of other titles as well.
Jackson, from Detroit and basing his earlier Mulheisen titles there, now lives in MT, and this mystery is set in those two cities. He gives a good sense of how run down and empty this copper mining town now is - from over 100,000 population to less than 40,000. And it *is* a tough town!
Good mystery, keeps moving, good local color in both towns - ending (despite the huge explosion) was kind of unexciting and flat. But I liked this enough to investigate if there is a sequal with the same bad guys in it. Enjoyable, quick read, wel written and does not insult the reader's intelligence (I hate when 2 guys battle 100 Mafia killers, and come out battered but somehow victorious).
Jackson, from Detroit and basing his earlier Mulheisen titles there, now lives in MT, and this mystery is set in those two cities. He gives a good sense of how run down and empty this copper mining town now is - from over 100,000 population to less than 40,000. And it *is* a tough town!
Good mystery, keeps moving, good local color in both towns - ending (despite the huge explosion) was kind of unexciting and flat. But I liked this enough to investigate if there is a sequal with the same bad guys in it. Enjoyable, quick read, wel written and does not insult the reader's intelligence (I hate when 2 guys battle 100 Mafia killers, and come out battered but somehow victorious).
October 20, 2014
I would not recommend this book to anybody. This book varied in detail chapter by chapter, it's conclusion was boring and predictable, and the characters weren't likable. This book got extremely graphic at times (the wrong times). A girl was being raped and it felt you were an eyewitness. Whether it was the goal of the author or not, it made the rest of the story seem plain. Secondly, the conclusion of this book was boring, what we all thought would happen and we all predicted. Lastly, the characters aren't likable. We have all read books and fallen in love with story and the characters. This book was nowhere close to that, and you couldn't relate to the characters in any way. Overall, this book is not advised, but if were to recommend this to someone, they would be over 13.
November 21, 2007
another cracker - Mul, the Sedlaceks, Joe Service, dry humour and dead baddies aplenty!
April 30, 2010
RATING: 3.0
November 11, 2012
My favorite Mulheisen yet! Excellent.
August 25, 2012
Fantastic book. All of Jon's books are winner. And a Great Missoula, Montana, Author - for a Detroit guy.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews