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Mali Anderson #3
No Time to Die
A serial killer stalks Harlem's Strivers' Row...
On a sweltering Harlem summer night, ex-cop Mali Anderson steps out to celebrate her friend Claudine's divorce from a handsome, cheating deadbeat who couldn't keep his fists out of her face. But Claudine doesn't show up for their dinner. Instead, she is found brutally murdered in her elegant home just off Strivers' Row, and Mali has no doubt Claudine's ex did it. Despite his threats, she can't keep out of the investigation. Especially when another woman meets the same savage, bizarre fate....
The two murders are just the start of a trail that leads street-smart Mali through the trash-talking and wise philosophizing of barbershops, beauty parlors, and bars...and toward a cunning killer whose homegrown hatred is zeroing in on Mali herself.
On a sweltering Harlem summer night, ex-cop Mali Anderson steps out to celebrate her friend Claudine's divorce from a handsome, cheating deadbeat who couldn't keep his fists out of her face. But Claudine doesn't show up for their dinner. Instead, she is found brutally murdered in her elegant home just off Strivers' Row, and Mali has no doubt Claudine's ex did it. Despite his threats, she can't keep out of the investigation. Especially when another woman meets the same savage, bizarre fate....
The two murders are just the start of a trail that leads street-smart Mali through the trash-talking and wise philosophizing of barbershops, beauty parlors, and bars...and toward a cunning killer whose homegrown hatred is zeroing in on Mali herself.
240 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
October 20, 2013
RATING: 3.5
Formerly a police officer with the NYPD, African American Mali Anderson was fired for punching out a racist cop in the first book of this series. NO TIME TO DIE is the third book, and Mail is preparing to enter a social work doctoral program. She has no intention of returning to the police, in spite of the fact that that her job may be offered to her again as a settlement in the lawsuit she filed as a result of the incident. Since the man she is dating, Tad Honeywell, is a homicide detective, she is still in the world of the cop in spite of herself. When one of her good friends, Claudine Hastings, is brutally murdered, she is pulled into investigating, although Tad is officially in charge and wary of Mali's involvement.
Mali is certain that the killer is Claudine's ex-husband, James, who is a slime of the lowest order. He is a vengeful man who has mistreated several of the women in their Harlem neighborhood and has a hatred for Mali based on her relationship with his ex-wife. Mali's feelings about James really color her objectivity, and she is forced to adjust her belief about James' guilt when the clues point elsewhere. The true killer is revealed early on, and several of the chapters of the book are told from his point of view. He is a truly tortured man (nicknamed "Ache") whose abusive childhood at the hands of an uncaring mother has led him to a deranged view of himself and others.
Mali is a target of both of these men. She is a strong and intelligent woman, but she is no match for their special brand of horror. Her passion and caring made her stand out from the rest of the characters, who were flat on the page, several verging on caricature. James, Claudine's ex-husband, is completely evil and lacking any positive qualities. Surprisingly, the serial killer, Ache, was even more of a caricature, which is a handicap to the story because much of the book was told from his point of view. Somehow, the sad events of his youth and mistreatment at the hands of his mother never felt real. His mother came across as more comical than frightening, which was certainly not the author's intention. Even the good guy, Tad, is one dimensional, exceptionally good looking and sensitive and oh so unreal!
As in Edwards' first book, IF I SHOULD DIE, the stand-out element is her depiction of the Harlem setting. Although the area is sadly falling into decline, Mali sees it with a lover's eye. She lives with her father, a jazz musician, and has a finely tuned sense of its past history and greatness. Harlem is the place where she lives and loves and is more of a character than any of the people in the narrative. Although the book itself was just average, there was the potential for so much more. Edwards' prose is beautiful, but the predictable plot and lack of depth in characterization ultimately disappoint.
Formerly a police officer with the NYPD, African American Mali Anderson was fired for punching out a racist cop in the first book of this series. NO TIME TO DIE is the third book, and Mail is preparing to enter a social work doctoral program. She has no intention of returning to the police, in spite of the fact that that her job may be offered to her again as a settlement in the lawsuit she filed as a result of the incident. Since the man she is dating, Tad Honeywell, is a homicide detective, she is still in the world of the cop in spite of herself. When one of her good friends, Claudine Hastings, is brutally murdered, she is pulled into investigating, although Tad is officially in charge and wary of Mali's involvement.
Mali is certain that the killer is Claudine's ex-husband, James, who is a slime of the lowest order. He is a vengeful man who has mistreated several of the women in their Harlem neighborhood and has a hatred for Mali based on her relationship with his ex-wife. Mali's feelings about James really color her objectivity, and she is forced to adjust her belief about James' guilt when the clues point elsewhere. The true killer is revealed early on, and several of the chapters of the book are told from his point of view. He is a truly tortured man (nicknamed "Ache") whose abusive childhood at the hands of an uncaring mother has led him to a deranged view of himself and others.
Mali is a target of both of these men. She is a strong and intelligent woman, but she is no match for their special brand of horror. Her passion and caring made her stand out from the rest of the characters, who were flat on the page, several verging on caricature. James, Claudine's ex-husband, is completely evil and lacking any positive qualities. Surprisingly, the serial killer, Ache, was even more of a caricature, which is a handicap to the story because much of the book was told from his point of view. Somehow, the sad events of his youth and mistreatment at the hands of his mother never felt real. His mother came across as more comical than frightening, which was certainly not the author's intention. Even the good guy, Tad, is one dimensional, exceptionally good looking and sensitive and oh so unreal!
As in Edwards' first book, IF I SHOULD DIE, the stand-out element is her depiction of the Harlem setting. Although the area is sadly falling into decline, Mali sees it with a lover's eye. She lives with her father, a jazz musician, and has a finely tuned sense of its past history and greatness. Harlem is the place where she lives and loves and is more of a character than any of the people in the narrative. Although the book itself was just average, there was the potential for so much more. Edwards' prose is beautiful, but the predictable plot and lack of depth in characterization ultimately disappoint.
January 2, 2021
A guided tour through Harlem, from the worst to the best, is part and parcel of this Mali Anderson series mystery. Although the Harlem history is a little overdone at times (no need to list every famous name that ever played the Apollo), and the mystery itself nothing that fans of the genre haven't seen before, Mali Anderson and her coterie of friends and relatives are richly presented, and illuminate lives that might not be familiar to the typical (i.e. white) mystery reader, without relying on dialect and stereotype. Recommended.
December 8, 2020
Wonderful descriptions of Harlem life and culture. Made me want to read more of her books.
July 14, 2010
I liked the two earlier books better - and DO wish there were more in the series* - like the main characters and would like to follow their lives! In all books, like the details about Harlem.
* Do or Die, published in 2000, is the 4th! :-)
* Do or Die, published in 2000, is the 4th! :-)
December 22, 2010
LOVE IT!!!!!!!!! This is a really good book. Mystery, little bit of love, and the whole truth about New York City. Well, most of the truth. Just read the book. You'll like it and probably get hooked.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews