The MacGuffin: A Mystery by Michael Craft

by Michael Craft

A cold-case murder fifteen years ago halted promising developments in the quest for clean energy when the rumored prototype of a groundbreaking water engine was stolen or destroyed. Now the race is on to repower America, and Cooper Brant, still grieving that long-ago murder of his father, suddenly finds his family visited by a second violent death, raising the stakes to unearth lost secrets. When Coop discovers how the two crimes are linked, a grim message becomes clear. He’s next.

Paperback

First published July 17, 2011

About the author

Michael Craft is the author of 20 published novels, four of which have been honored as finalists for Lambda Literary Awards. The first installment of his Dante & Jazz series, "Desert Getaway," was a 2023 MWA Edgars nominee for the Lilian Jackson Braun Award. The second installment, "Desert Deadline," was a Gold Winner of the IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award, as was his 2019 mystery, "ChoirMaster." In addition, his prize-winning short fiction has appeared in British as well as American literary journals. Craft grew up in Illinois and spent his middle years in Wisconsin, which inspired the fictitious small-town setting of Dumont, used in many of his earlier books. He holds an MFA in creative writing from Antioch University, Los Angeles, and now lives in Rancho Mirage, California, near Palm Springs, the setting of his current Dante & Jazz mystery series. In 2017, Michael Craft's professional archives were acquired by the Special Collections Department of the Rivera Library at the University of California, Riverside. Visit the author's website at www.michaelcraft.com.

Reviews

[Alannah Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best of the almost 50 books I've read so far this year, topped only by Stephen King's "11/22/63." I'll skip the description of the storyline, as this is already covered by the blurb and some of my fellow reviewers. Suffice to say that "The MacGuffin" was so good, I didn't want to put it down. Yet I delayed picking it back up again because I didn't want to come to the end of the story and remove myself from these characters' lives. THAT is how invested I became in these characters. They are so realistically drawn - not always likeable, but always real - that I found myself thinking about their world even when I wasn't reading the book. I think that is the number one sign of a great piece of writing: when the story stays with you long beyond the moment you put the physical book down.

And, by the way. The ending? Absolute perfection.

I highly recommend "The MacGuffin" for mystery readers who value characterization and a haunting storyline.

[Alan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cold-case murder of an alternative energy scientist, Dr. Brant, fifteen years ago halted promising developments in the quest for clean energy when the rumored prototype of a groundbreaking water engine was stolen or destroyed. Now Cooper Brant, still grieving his father’s murder, is the architect who designed the new Emery Energy headquarters outside of Palm Springs, California. Brant was selected to design the company compound because he’s married to the daughter of Bix Emery, the patriarch who controls the company, his family, and America’s move from being oil-centric to alternative fuels.

When Cooper discovers an old box his father hid, with what looks like a prototype machine and a stack of old files, the race is on to discover the secret to repower America. But another violent death in the family raises the stakes. When Cooper discovers how the two murders are linked, a grim message becomes clear. He’s next.

This book was recommended to me because the setting is my hometown, Palm Springs. As much as I enjoyed reading the author’s descriptions of this town I love, the real gem in this novel is the authors prose. Each word is chosen with care to give the prose a pleasing flow. It is a pleasure to read. It is what I term a ‘light read’ even though it deals with topical subjects that could have been highly political in another author’s hands. This novel never tries to be anything other than an entertaining read.

As enjoyable as I found the writing, I found the characters uninteresting, so I never grew to care what happened to them. They left me feeling flat. Also, I found the story much too predictable.

Michael Craft is best known for his “Mark Manning” and “Claire Gray” mystery series, both of which, I understand, fall into the category of gay fiction. The MacGuffin, is Craft’s first novel in six years, and is his first novel outside the “gay fiction’ genre.

[Wendy Hines · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coopers had a rough life. He is missing a ring finger from childhood, his mother committed suicide when his father took up with a woman of color, and then his father was murdered. The killer never found. Now, on his second marriage, Cooper is the architect for his wife's family business. His father-in-law is an oil tycoon and about to take the business into a green direction, focusing on energy instead of oil.
When the detective who investigated Cooper's dad shows up during a press conference, he is stunned. It's been fifteen years, what could she want now? When she talks to Cooper after the conference, she explains that his dad's case is the only one she hasn't been able to close. A cold case for fifteen years, she wants to reopen the case.

When Cooper's stepson, Kavanall, is murdered, Cooper does some investigating of his own. As the investigation gets deeper, Cooper begins to realize that the two murders are connected, and that his life could be in jeopardy.

The MacGuffin is a page-turning suspense with remarkable characters. My favorites were the visits Cooper made to his trainer and the dentist. Humorous but revealing information was exchanged at those appointments that really lead the reader in the right direction. Michael Craft is an extremely talented author and storyteller - keeping this reader entranced from beginning to end. Mystery readers won't want to miss this one!

[Brian Williams · Rating 2 out of 5]

This had an intriging plot and storyline but the author dropped the ball on execution of telling the story. It dragged through the first half of the book and only then picked up, although it still was well-padded. I had an internal debate about whether to give up on it or continue reading (I continued to the end). Most bizarre for me was the large amount of attention paid to the protagonist's dental flossing habits, or lack thereof. Similarly, there was the beginning of a side story about a hang glider who was killed in an accident. The incident was mentioned a couple of times, but nothing came of it. In the final analysis this was a disappointment. For anyone wanting to read this author, I'd rrecommend the later Mark Manning books or the Claire Gray series.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very LA noir-ish. A good mystery, but more of a thriller. Craft's style and humor still works, even if the characters aare mostly not very likeable, including the protagonist who is rather passive throughout.