Death in the Fast Lane

by Chris Jay Becker

When Rock legend Buzzy Motorola dies mysteriously, LAPD Detectives King Leary and Millionaire Adler to investigate . On the way, they meet crazed music biz types, the Mayflower Mafia, and a serial killer who calls himself The Angel of Righteousness. On top of all this, Leary has a secret... he sees dead people.

Genres: Mystery, Mystery Thriller

192 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 9, 2011

Reviews

[Nascha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book is a good beginning to a series. The main character King Leary and his partner Millionaire Adler are very interesting and make good detectives. I thought this book was a quick read and I was really into it. My first complaint---and I don't usually make this complaint---was that there needed to be another copy edit of the book. There were some blatant misspellings and a few errors that interrupted the flow for me. There was one scene where the writer puts the wrong character's name in place and it really stopped me from getting the full impact of the scene.

Funny thing is, I am not usually one of those readers. I don't usually nitpick like this and I feel a little guilty for doing it. But I think what made it more noticeable (and irritating) for me is that his language/prose is sparse so when you have any kind of error it tends to be glaring.

The only other thing that I didn't like was the final reveal. I just didn't believe the killer or his motivations. I think because I thought it was someone or something else all together. I felt like the author wanted to go in one direction but resisted. Could just be my thinking though. Still, this gave me a good ride and I enjoyed it.

The author states that he is working on the next two books in the series and I will probably pick those up as well.

For that reason, I give this book 3.5 stars, which I have rounded up to 4 stars.

[Frederick Brooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're looking for a Los Angeles mystery centering on the music industry, with real people, real bands and real police procedure, look no further than Death in the Fast Lane. This book is a fast, fun read. The narrator, Detective Leary, possesses a sharp wit. Working in the homicide division that deals with crimes involving celebrities, he also knows his music, and I mean knows it. He can tell you who filled in when the drummer died in some obscure California band back in the early 1990s. But he also surprises with knowledge and wit on literary figures as wide ranging as Milton, Dylan Thomas and the Dead Sea Scrolls.

I loved the fast pace of Death in the Fast Lane. The dialogue was entertaining. The characters, starting with Leary but not limited to him, are three-dimensional. The author brings in their ghosts and demons in appropriate measure, not weighing down the story but giving it depth.

I've put Chris Jay Becker on my list of authors to follow, because this book was really well-written and good fun.