Sunset

John Bekker #1

by Al Lamanda

Nominated for the Edgar Award for best Mystery.Police Detective John Bekker had it a beautiful wife, a five-year old daughter and a job he loved...but all of that changed in the blink of an eye. Assigned to a special task force investigating organized crime, Bekker got a little too close to mob boss Eddie Crist. As a message to back off, Bekker's home is invaded, his wife murdered and all this witnessed by his five-year-old daughter. A decade later Bekker, a drunk with an institutionalized daughter, comes face to face with Eddie Crist, now near death from cancer with a final wish -- to go to his grave with a clear conscience. In an ironic twist of fate, the man Bekker believed responsible for his wife's death hires him to solve the decade-old murder. The outcome leaves everyone breathless.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction

273 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2012

About the author

Al Lamanda was born and raised in The Bronx, New York. He worked for many years as a private investigator and crime prevention specialist. He has authored five published novels, two feature films with another under option and more than a dozen books for Kindle.

Reviews

[Maureen DeLuca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm giving this book a solid 4 stars and I added 1 more for a great , new series!!

I copied this from the book jacket itself- (me being a tad bit lazy today)

Police Detective John Bekker had it all: a beautiful wife, a five-year old daughter and a job he loved...but all of that changed in the blink of an eye. Assigned to a special task force investigating organized crime, Bekker got a little too close to mob boss Eddie Crist. As a message to back off, Bekker's home is invaded, his wife murdered and all this witnessed by his five-year-old daughter. A decade later Bekker, a drunk with an institutionalized daughter, comes face to face with Eddie Crist, now near death from cancer with a final wish -- to go to his grave with a clear conscience. In an ironic twist of fate, the man Bekker believed responsible for his wife's death hires him to solve the decade-old murder.

It was an amazing , fast read- a series that if you haven't picked up - please do- I have the second book at hold at my library now- can't wait to go and pick it up!!

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ten years ago, John Bekker's wife was raped and murdered in front of their six year old daughter. The girl hasn't spoken since. John hasn't been sober since. Until the mob boss who was suspected of being behind the murder hires John to find the real killer.

I can't remember the last time I power-read anything. But I began this Friday evening and finished it today, and I can't wait for the next book in the series.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love "P.I." Mysteries.
This is a good one!
Years ago, Detective John Bekker's wife was brutally killed, in view of their small daughter. The daughter is now in an institution, and Bekker has lived inside a bottle, as an alcoholic.
Now, the gangster Bekker was sure had his wife killed, has hired him, to find the real killer...
Bekker digs into the past, not sure what he will find...
Good stuff, and it reads fast...
I look forward to the next one!

[Chuck Bradley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good who-dunnit with a geriatric protagonist who emerges from a 12 year swim in Scotch bottles to solve the rape and murder of his wife witnessed by his daughter who's been in a vegetative state ever since. I enjoyed it as an entertaining and mentally undemanding read.

[Dana Dienno · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! Kept me on the edge of my seat, I could not put it down until it was done. This is one of the best mystery/thriller books I have read in a long time!!! Unfortunately I can't talk about it without giving away the "good" stuff, the whole book is fantastic!!! :)

[Joe O'Connor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very Good; Continuing character: John Bekker (first in series); an alcoholic ex-cop whose wife was murdered and daughter institutionalized is dried out by the mob boss he thought responsible for the attack who assures him not only didn't do it, he wants him to find out who did

[Karen Burgess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super-fun book of its type, a great read. Up for Best Novel Edgar from the Mystery Writers of America. Read more here: http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/s...

[Michael crage · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this book and am looking for any more in the series by the author. John Bekker had been a very good police detective until his wife was brutally murdered with his five year old daughter looking on. It tormented her so much that she never spoke another word up until this time which was twelve years later. John went off the deep end and drank himself to a point he would fall asleep every night. The police game him a disability income which he lived on. The one day he is given a forced detox courtesy of Eddie Crist, the head mobster in the area who John felt had been responsible for his wife's death. Crist is dying of cancer and swears he had nothing to do with John's wife's death. He wants John to work for him as a private detective to find out who did do the deed.

[Todd Lowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ten years ago, Police Detective John Bekker’s wife was raped and murdered. His five-year-old daughter was hiding but witnessed the event. She has not spoken since and has been living in an institution since the event. John Bekker was drunk for the last ten years.
Becker is kidnapped and wakes up hand cuffed to a bed. A doctor arrives to tell Bekker he will be supervising Bekker going cold turkey. After detox he is weak but sober.
He is brought To Mobster Eddie Crist, who Bekker blames for the murder of his wife. Crist proclaims his innocence and hires Bekker to find the real murderer.
Great story with likeable characters and great dialog and humor. I read it in one sitting. John Becker is one of my favorite characters.

[Warren Thoms · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good book with a different story. I liked the character of John Bekker and the writing flowed very easily. I was sure that I knew who the "bad guy" was but was off which was ok with me. Looking forward to the second book.

[Ronald Howell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read.

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book from the author for an honest review. What a story!! I really didn't know if I would enjoy this book as it really isn't my normal genre. But once I started it I couldn't put it down! Well developed characters, action packed and twists I never saw coming! For anyone who loves a good murder mystery with mob ties you are going to really love this book. I am now a total John Bekker fan!!

Ex Police Detective John Bekker is an amazing character and in the beginning you feel as if you are sitting on the beach with him sipping beers and watching the sunset as he drinks his life away. Once the action starts and John is hired to solve his own wife's murder you meet a number of people who could be responsible for it from Mob Bosses to fellow policemen and here the twists begin. It isn't until the very end that John figures out who did it and why... absolutely amazing ending!

[Silverblue · Rating 3 out of 5]

I actually like this book, except a man who was living in the bottle for more than 12 yrs goes cold turkey in 5 days flat, comes out clean, overpowers his assailants who work out day-in-day-out and kicks a**, outsmarts everyone! even in fiction it's a bit silly to imagine that. However, as usual, the human nature/condition rules: Cops go rogue for money, kill their friends and or their families and those who think they uphold the law and think they go after the rogue ones do the same for money but in a different name and format = revenge. The cop, the Bekker guy crawled into the bottle because of his wife's murder by his colleagues who're working for the mafia yet he worked with the same mafia to get his revenge...took money, weapon, investigated and delivered his colleagues! A bit rich to take the high road even for the ex-cop. But a good read.

[Jack · Rating 2 out of 5]

Excellent writing, a real page-turner until until the end. Then, the hero is followed by a man who is a mall security guard. Hero confronts the guard, learns that he was hired by a man who identified himself as a state cop, and who promises the guard preferential treatment for a job for which he is on a waiting list. Then we learn that the hero's car has had a bomb attached while he's with the guard, and that hero's daughter has been threatened.

Hero then gets information that allows him to find the bad guy. Everything involving the security guard, the state cop, the bomb is forgotten. Even if we assume that bad guy was also the one who hired the guard and planted the bomb, it makes no sense. Bad guy couldn't have found the guard, nor known about the state police exam results, without others being involved. Nothing hints at that.

All these loose ends ruin a good read

[Charles Biggs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Al Lamanda's Sunset was the first one of his books that I've read and it definitely won't be the last. This is the type of crime mystery that's perfect for the many noise challenged locations we often have to suffer through. In this case I easily finished the book during one of my most recent 6 hour R/T nonstop cross country flights in a very cramped coach seat with countless screaming children of all ages.

The story line of Sunset builds on itself, characters are well developed, and there are just enough twists to keep you interested. Couldn't ask for more with a character like John Bekker. I'm already planning to read another one of Lamanda's books on my next flight coming up.

[Irene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Police detective John Bekker had it all: a beautiful wife, a five year old daughter and a job he loved. He was assigned to a special task force investigating organized crime. He got too close to mob boss, Eddie Crist. As a message to back off, Bekker's home was invaded and his daughter witnessed the brutal murder of her mother. For the last ten years, Bekker has been drunk living in a rundown trailer on the beach. After being forced to sober up he comes face to face with Crist who swears innocence is Bekker;s wife's murder. Bekker is hired to solve the decade-old murder. Crist has a final wish--to go to his grave with a clear conscience.

[KarenC · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Routine" murder mystery with some twists. Bekker gets involuntarily pulled out of the alcoholic depths to solve his wife's murder after 12 years. Plenty of characters to look guilty, mob boss, crooked cops, good cops, donuts, sexual tension, obligatory sex, basically all the elements of a detective novel are included. The case is solved just in time. Lamanda develops a decent character & places him in a solid atmospheric setting. Entertaining read that shouldn't have taken me as long as it did to read.

[Coco · Rating 2 out of 5]

This novel is a compelling read despite all of its rough spots, including a man, drunk for a decade, who suffers no liver damage and is in remarkably good physical shape, the plot device that starts the story too convoluted to believe (the omniscient, powerful mob guy who hires the clueless, grieving, wasted drunk ex-cop to solve his mystery), too many crooked cops to count, incredibly clunky stabs at writing sexy passages, and pathetic wise-guy comments scattered among the dialogue. 2.5 stars

[Stan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bekker is a character who will feel familiar to anyone who's enjoyed Parker's Spenser or Child's Reacher. The plot is intriguing: Bekker is enlisted to solve his own wife's murder, by the very mob boss everyone believes to have been responsible for the murder. The prose is concise and engaging, and the book reads fast. My only issue -- (nitpicker alert) -- is a certain carelessness in the writing, with occasional grammatical awkwardness or inconsistency in stated details.

[Jo-anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had no expectations of this book so I was pleasantly surprised that it captured my interest so quickly. It was a bit predictable but still kept me reading to see if I had guessed correctly. I will check out other books by this author.

[Walt Mccluskey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sunset

A totally different story than what I expected and one of the best string of events and turns to keep you interested and wanting to see the next part. I will read others by the author to see if this was a fluke or his typical writing. If his writing, he has a fan.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well-done hard-boiled detective with a heart mystery. Great characters, likable. Humor blended with tragedy. Nice, taciturn style.

[Tim]

Quite good.

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book.I can't wait to read the next one!

[John Scott · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hey Rockford, where's your Firebird?

[Harvey · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

some rough edges and cliches in the writing but interesting characters. I will seek out the next in series

[Crystal · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book very much.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly amazing debut and a great read

[Shirley · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like a good murder mystery and mob story, you will like this book. My second book by this author and will not be the last.

[Chuck Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

good read, very well done