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Black Jack Justice: Dead Men Run
“I KNOW WHAT YOU DID” The writer of the mysterious letter could have been talking about any number of misdeeds, some large, some small, some frankly unsuitable for print. When it comes to deeply unqualified guardians of the moral high ground, it would be tough to find many that equaled Black Jack Justice and his erstwhile partner, Trixie Dixon, girl detective. But they will learn the hard way just how serious the sender was, and that in the end, only Dead Men Run. The his and hers private detectives of Decoder Ring Theatre’s long-running radio mysteries return to two-fisted prose adventure, delighting long-time fans and new readers alike with the classic, hard-boiled feel of their exploits.
198 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2015
6 people are currently reading
28 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
August 2, 2020
Really fun! Gregg Taylor delivers again. I love Trixie & Jack & all the other light-noir-style characters with which Taylor has filled out the Jack Justice world. The snarky banter (clean-but-innuendo-filled) and the snappy pacing are even better than in his marvelous Red Panda series. I hope he keeps the Black Jack Justice novels & the radio shows coming forever!
May 28, 2019
Enjoyable adventure for Black Jack Justice and Trixie Dixon, girl detective. Rather like a long version of one of the Decoder Ring Theatre episodes.
July 25, 2015
Book two for me and Black Jack, fun, ... just fun.
May 31, 2015
Another enjoyable outing with Jack Justice and Trixie Dixon. A secret from Jack's past comes back to haunt him. Worse, it leaves him branded a murderer -- a cop-killer, in fact -- and leaves him running for his life whilst trying to solve the mystery of who framed him.
This is another early adventure with Jack and Trixie and it tests the limits of their early partnership. Did Jack kill the cop? Does Trixie think he's capable of that? Can Jack trust Trixie to have his back? It's all played out very well but I didn't feel this outing was as seamless as the first novel. It felt a little more patchwork and there were scenes that felt like padding.
That's not to say it's a bad read by any stretch. If you like Black Jack Justice (either the original novel or the Decoder Ring Theatre series), there's plenty to like here.
This is another early adventure with Jack and Trixie and it tests the limits of their early partnership. Did Jack kill the cop? Does Trixie think he's capable of that? Can Jack trust Trixie to have his back? It's all played out very well but I didn't feel this outing was as seamless as the first novel. It felt a little more patchwork and there were scenes that felt like padding.
That's not to say it's a bad read by any stretch. If you like Black Jack Justice (either the original novel or the Decoder Ring Theatre series), there's plenty to like here.
June 26, 2019
Audiobook: 5hr. 8m.
Always happy for more time alongside my favourite wise-cracking sleuths. Story pacing varies well, with a few well-executed surprises. Listened via the Decoder Ring Theatre podcast, and would happily give another listen through when I start missing that action-packed gumshoe life.
Always happy for more time alongside my favourite wise-cracking sleuths. Story pacing varies well, with a few well-executed surprises. Listened via the Decoder Ring Theatre podcast, and would happily give another listen through when I start missing that action-packed gumshoe life.
June 13, 2019
Listened to the audiobook version from the Decoder Ring Theatre podcast, read by the two voices who usually does the main characters. Which meant that they were excellent as themselves, but not quite as excellent when doing the voices of each other and other characters. And there were a couple of times where the text specifically said that a character said something in a certain way, which was not really reflected by the person doing the reading. But that's a minor quibble.
The book is a followup to Black Jack Justice where the two main characters met. If this one, they've just started working together. Knowing what one knows about their later partnership brings an extra dimension to the story, but it can be read as a standalone.
It is of course longer than the stories in the podcast and it also goes darker than they tend to do. It is also not as funny as the podcast, although there were some scenes and some lines - mostly with Trixie - which were just pure comedy gold.
I felt that they story kinda dragged in places, mostly because Jack just refused to help Trixie help him by letting her in on what was going on, but overall everybody acted sensibly. The triggerhappy cops had a good explanation and so on. The bad guy started out scary, but ended up as a bit of a disappointment.
All in all I'm giving this four stars simply because there are better Black Jack Justice stories out there, but it's still a must for fans of the podcast and a recommendation for readers of less grim thrillers in general.
The book is a followup to Black Jack Justice where the two main characters met. If this one, they've just started working together. Knowing what one knows about their later partnership brings an extra dimension to the story, but it can be read as a standalone.
It is of course longer than the stories in the podcast and it also goes darker than they tend to do. It is also not as funny as the podcast, although there were some scenes and some lines - mostly with Trixie - which were just pure comedy gold.
I felt that they story kinda dragged in places, mostly because Jack just refused to help Trixie help him by letting her in on what was going on, but overall everybody acted sensibly. The triggerhappy cops had a good explanation and so on. The bad guy started out scary, but ended up as a bit of a disappointment.
All in all I'm giving this four stars simply because there are better Black Jack Justice stories out there, but it's still a must for fans of the podcast and a recommendation for readers of less grim thrillers in general.
June 30, 2019
The second Black Jack Justice audiobook released from the Decoder Ring Theatre podcast, this book tells a fresh story about the eponymous hero, and can be downloaded as an audiobook from the podcast feed. Like the previous Black Jack Justice novel, chapters alternate between the two main characters (Jack and Trixie) with each chapter read by the actor who voices that character in the podcast.
This second story is a better story than the first in my opinion. I don't read a whole lot of mystery or detective stories, but this one caught my interest and came to a very satisfactory conclusion.
This second story is a better story than the first in my opinion. I don't read a whole lot of mystery or detective stories, but this one caught my interest and came to a very satisfactory conclusion.
December 28, 2019
This was a fun read - trope-y in a way that makes it seem like a greatest hits of noir detective stories. If you're someone who likes detective stories as a genre, but doesn't read a lot of them, you'll probably dig this. For the more entrenched noir fan I could see it becoming a case of familiarity breeding comtempt, though? Regardless, the banter between Jack and Trixie is always fun (and that level of fun matched by the dual narrators in the audiobook version)
April 28, 2019
Splitting up the detective duo is a mistake as it’s the banter between the two that I love, but this isn’t a bad story, some peril but not a lot of detectoring.
December 16, 2019
To say I love the worlds Gregg Taylor writes is an understatement. Out of his two main one, Black Justice is my favourite. This book was good.
October 8, 2015
Gregg Taylor provides another thrilling adventure from the files of Black Jack Justice and Trixie Dixon, girl detective. Taylor's characters are fully formed, brought to life through often amusing dialogue, heart-pounding action, and introspection. He has a gift for description of this noir world and I particularly enjoyed the detail of the extended chase scene, you don't often see a character's full, winding path when they run from the police. Taylor also has a great ear for dialog even when, as happens in this story, his two heroes are not exchanging barbs throughout the majority of the novel.
If you enjoy noir detective adventures, then I recommend this one.
If you enjoy noir detective adventures, then I recommend this one.
June 22, 2015
If there were half stars, this would be 3.5. But it wasn't anywhere near as good as the first Black Jack Justice book. I'm hopeful that a reread will make me raise the rating, as I really want to like it more.
My standard book tests:
Could everything be solved by the main characters sitting down and talking at the beginning? Yes. For the most part, almost everything could have been avoided.
Does the main character make mistakes? Jack makes a few early on (see not sitting down and actually having a discussion about the horrible events that are about to happen). But that's it.
My standard book tests:
Could everything be solved by the main characters sitting down and talking at the beginning? Yes. For the most part, almost everything could have been avoided.
Does the main character make mistakes? Jack makes a few early on (see not sitting down and actually having a discussion about the horrible events that are about to happen). But that's it.
March 28, 2016
Brilliant noir with a side of banter
Those who know of my love for Jack justice et al and the red panda will expect a ringing endorsement of this book and I'd hate to disappoint. From the moment old square jaw gets himself deep in the brown stuff to the plucky girl detective pulling it all together. I loved it. With all my favourite supporting characters I simply cannot wait for the next thrilling instalment. And yes if you've heard the podcasts when you read this you'll read it in character.
Those who know of my love for Jack justice et al and the red panda will expect a ringing endorsement of this book and I'd hate to disappoint. From the moment old square jaw gets himself deep in the brown stuff to the plucky girl detective pulling it all together. I loved it. With all my favourite supporting characters I simply cannot wait for the next thrilling instalment. And yes if you've heard the podcasts when you read this you'll read it in character.
July 2, 2015
I love everything to do with Black Jack Justice & Trixie Dixon, Girl Detective. I've long been a fan of their podcasts at DecoderRingTheater.com and now the books are proving equally unresistable. This is 50s noir done right, and the "Girl Detective" adds just the right amount of tongue-in-cheek sass.
December 16, 2015
Very good read. I was able to complete the book in one day. Black Jack and Trixie Dixon, Girl Detective, are painted here in a literary manner very similar to the personalities demonstrated in the audio presentations of Black Jack Justice. I am very much looking forward to the next edition.
June 25, 2015
Gosh, I sure do enjoy reading about my friends Jack and Trixie, almost as much as I enjoy the Podcasts.
July 2, 2015
As always, a wonderful trip into the seedy underworld that is the un-named city where Jack and Trixie work. Good action scenes and snappy dialogue. Would love a full cast audio recording of these!
July 21, 2015
Not as good as the last one (which is disappointing because the show has become 100x better in the interim). But good for what it is, a light read for easy entertainment.
March 27, 2016
I loved it!
I am a huge fan of the Black Jack audio dramas and I can honestly say that the books have exActly the same feel.
I am a huge fan of the Black Jack audio dramas and I can honestly say that the books have exActly the same feel.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews