False Confessions

Doug Orlando Mystery #2

by Steve Neil Johnson

The bestselling crime novels of New York life in the early nineties are back. Gruff, weary, gay Brooklyn Homicide cop Doug Orlando is facing his most terrifying a serial killer who leaves his victims naked but for dozens of long, murderous needles. The victims were last seen at No Exit, a gay club catering to the piercing and tattooing scene. When a priest rumored to have heard the killer’s confession—and refused to reveal his identity—is found bludgeoned before his altar, war ignites between the city’s gay community and the power elite of the Church. Orlando’s search leads him through the underside of modern, urban Catholicism to New York’s S&M playgrounds, and to a tattoo parlor that leaves its own unique mark on its patrons. But can he solve the case before the city burns?

Genres: Mystery, M M Romance, LGBT, Fiction, Gay Fiction, Gay

236 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 1993

About the author

Steve Neil Johnson is a novelist and screenwriter who has written 25 scripts for television and is the author of the Doug Orlando mysteries, FINAL ATONEMENT (Lambda Literary Award nominee) and FALSE CONFESSIONS. His other books include the thriller THIS ENDLESS NIGHT, the young adult novel RAISING KANE and the middle-grade book EVERYBODY HATES EDGAR ALLAN POE! He was honored by The ONE Institute/The International Gay and Lesbian Archives for his contributions to gay literature. He is currently working on a four-part crime saga, The L.A. AFTER MIDNIGHT Quartet.

Reviews

[Ije the Devourer of Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great mystery by Steve Neil Johnson!!!

Detective Doug Orlando is on the case of a serial killer who is targeting gay men who are into the piercing and tattooing scene. They are murdered in a most horrendous way but the killer has revealed himself by confessing to a local priest.

Orlando wants the priest to disclose what he has found out but the priest refuses to break the confidentiality of confession and before Orlando can persuade him the priest is murdered.

As usual Orlando works alone without the support of his police force because they hate him for blowing the whistle on police brutality and they hate him because he is gay. Orlando discovers that evidence is being tampered with and that he has to work against his own colleagues in order to solve the crime.

Set in New York this is another great and gritty murder mystery from this author. The story is well paced and gripping and has a way of making you feel all the twists and turns and darkness that Orlando has to go through in order to piece the mystery together. The mystery brings community tension, religious politics, gruesome murders and a homophobic police force into one tension - filled but delicious whole. I really liked the way the author portrayed the religious issues showing that gay people are also part of religious institutions hoping and working for change within and the way in which he portrayed the corruption and nonchalance of the police.

It was a great book with many roller coaster twist and turns!! Steve Neil Johnson has become an auto buy author for me. His stories are some of the best that I have come across so far this year.

[Shelba · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Orlando as a character. I'm a bit disappointed that this is the last book in the series, as it felt like there was some unfinished business, but at the same time, when you consider that in the almost 30 years since this was published, not much has changed with police... so in that sense, it feels appropriate that it felt unfinished.

[Aussie54 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this second book in the Doug Orlando Mystery series.

Once again, Doug has to solve a new case while being harassed by Briggs the rogue cop, who has now completed his six month suspension. In the midst of an investigation into the grisly serial murders of local gay men Doug has to deal with the death of a local parish priest. The Catholic Church plays a major role in this story. It has a lot to answer for when it comes to its treatment of LGBT people.

Doug's lover becomes involved in the investigation this time, and it's good to see the personal interplay between the two. Their private life seems to be happier in Book 2. I liked Stewart's reaction to Doug's new tattoo, which he sees for the first time while entertaining work colleagues.

Steve Neil Johnson writes intelligently, with sympathetic characters, interesting plots and fast pacing, which had me on the edge of my seat, wondering just how things were going to turn out. His style reminds me a little of Joseph Hansen's work, which I've always admired

[Robert Fontenot · Rating 3 out of 5]

this isn’t a bad book, although it is somewhat forgettable. It is very of its time in both style, and its approach to the subject matter. More of a thriller than the first one, with an operatic ending and some odd character choices. The main character’s husband, in particular, has undergone a transformation. In the first book, he hates the fact that his husband is a homicide detective and very much wants his husband to quit due to the bad treatment he receives in the department. In this volume, there’s lip service given to that but he is also weirdly involved in the investigation, including helping out in some B and E. This one is also a lot more gay than the previous one, particularly in the details of the various investigations. While I appreciate that, it’s a lot of gay plot lines to throw together all at once. Save some thing for next time.

[Misty · Rating 5 out of 5]

** 4.5 Stars **

[J.j. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read both these books almost twenty years ago when they first came out. I loved them then, but I have to say, they've actually improved with age because they do such an incredible job of evoking what New York was like back in the early 1990s. It's so fascinating to see how some of the neighborhoods have changed, and how some things never seem to change, like the hostilities and prejudices of different minority groups all squeezed together in a high-density area like Brooklyn.

[Gail Overholt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ouch! This was gruesome. I initially gave the book 4 stars because of the horror and shock. I felt it viscerally. It was so upsetting; it bothered me for days.

But as the days passed, I came to recognize the book for the 5-star read it is. Like its predecessor, Final Atonement, it's a well-written, suspenseful, and surprising mystery.

Doug (whom the author continually refers to as "Orlando," even when he's intimate with his partner, Stewart) mends one fence among his police colleagues but continues to be ostracized by his lieutenant and bullied by his nemesis, Biggs.

Two related murders affect Doug personally. A serial killer has set his sights on gay men who frequent an unconventional nightclub. Then the killer divulges the murders to a local priest during confession, and now the priest has been murdered.

Both cases are complicated. The priest’s murder is assigned to Biggs, but it's personal for Doug. It’s the parish he grew up in, so he has an interest in solving the case. He knows Biggs will take the easy way out, and key in on the first person he sees, but Doug knows he's wrong. Doug continues to investigate the priest's murder and discovers it's far more complex than originally thought.

The gay men’s deaths are horrific—the reason I found the book so upsetting. Doug makes a couple of wrong assumptions, but eventually gets to the truth. The killer is surprising, yet clues were there all along. Of course, 0nce Doug identifies the murderer, Biggs selfishly wants to take credit for the arrest. (Hint: it doesn’t end well for Biggs.)

Doug's lover Stewart plays a bigger role in this novel. There are a couple of mild scenes of intimacy. Stewart even helps Doug with the case—the one glaring liberty Steve Neil Johnson takes with his usually precise depiction of police work.

The book was published in 1993, so the “historical” aspects of dial phones and the treat of AIDS aren’t historical per se, but they add a flavor of the past for current readers.

Sadly, this is the last of the Doug Orlando novels. I would have loved to see them continue, but Johnson has a quartet of books set in Los Angeles that are now on my TBR list. So I'm not done with this excellent author.

[Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

I so rarely just pick up a book at the bookstore, but, thanks to Giovanni's Room in Philadelphia's (LGBT book shop )amazing used queer mystery section, I felt like experimenting.

This book has it all! Queen Nation actions! Priest sex abuse! Homophobia in the workplace! Piercings and tats!

Seriously, really well written and plotted and just a really good series mystery novel. I am sad there are only two :(

[Ajax1978 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this and the first of the series back to back sitting in various airports and on planes for the past few days. Enjoyable enough mysteries and interesting characters but not so taxing that I wasn't able to people watch every now and then and forget what was going on when I would finally go back to reading. The anti-Catholic church diatribes, while appropriate for the characters, were a little tiresome after a while so I just skimmed until the plot was moving along again. But honestly, as I sit here and try and think of things, positive or negative, to say I really am at a loss. So three stars it is.

[Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

I fell in love with the characters in these books, not just the protagonist, tough homicide cop Doug Orlando and his romantic partner Stewart, but the whole lively cast of supporting characters. Steve Neil Johnson shows such a love for his characters and the varied neighborhoods in Brooklyn where the mystery takes place. Hard hitting and strongly written, with a sharp eye for the foibles of humanity, but also laced with humor.

[Lloyd · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best mystery series I've ever read. Nobody does a better job of capturing the tentions between minority groups in New York City than Steve Neil Johnson in the Doug Orlando mysteries. New editions of these classic books came out recently (Kindle and Nook, too)and I recommned them to everyone who likes gritty crime fiction. Sharply written, fast paced, with great characters.

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've never even been to Brooklyn but I feel like I've lived there and have hung out in the diverse neighborhoods after reading Final Atonement and False Confessions. The descriptions are so vivid and the characters so real, and even though the books are on serious subjects Steve Neil Johnson lightens them with humor. I found these books to be clever, razor-sharp, and just so enjoyable.

[Dave Hersch · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a good read

I liked detective Orlando, the consummate good guy cop who happened to be gay. Good character development. Only problem I had was with some of the descriptive narrative, as if the author was trying too hard.

[Vfields Don't touch my happy! · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wanted more from this writer and never got it!

[Heydave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Much better than the first Doug Orlando, wish the series hadn't ended. Builds up a good deal of tension and suspense. Hard to put down.

[Jean Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

A terrific series!

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I friend recommended these books and I'm so glad he did. I loved them both.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this series. Its a pity that there were only 2 books in the series.
Again the romance comes a distant second to the murder mystery that Doug is trying to solve.
In this book he goes up against the Catholic Church when one of its preiests is killed.
I wish that there was another in this series, I really want to find out if he gives a donation so Ronnie can have a baby.
If you haven't read this series you should, its good.