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Disposable Souls
The body of Pastor Sandy Gardner, a TV preacher with a global following, turns up near a Halifax container pier. The mysterious case lands with Cam Neville, a city cop with a dead wife, PTSD, and a haunting past. Can Neville, a former biker and war hero, solve the killing and find himself?
In search of the truth, Neville and his partner, a Mi’kmaw Mountie named Blair Christmas, enter a perilous world of strippers, kiddie porn, and corruption that threatens to destroy them. Meanwhile, Neville is torn between loyalties to his two brothers, one still with the Satan’s Stallion bike club founded by their father, and another, a priest who wants to save everyone, including Cam.
In Disposable Souls, author Phonse Jessome has created a complex and compelling protagonist and placed him in a gritty underbelly of bikers, cops, and killers, masterfully blurring the lines between good and bad, sinners and saints.
In search of the truth, Neville and his partner, a Mi’kmaw Mountie named Blair Christmas, enter a perilous world of strippers, kiddie porn, and corruption that threatens to destroy them. Meanwhile, Neville is torn between loyalties to his two brothers, one still with the Satan’s Stallion bike club founded by their father, and another, a priest who wants to save everyone, including Cam.
In Disposable Souls, author Phonse Jessome has created a complex and compelling protagonist and placed him in a gritty underbelly of bikers, cops, and killers, masterfully blurring the lines between good and bad, sinners and saints.
344 pages, Paperback
Published August 24, 2016
3 people are currently reading
352 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
August 25, 2016
Another book I had to put down. This book is just too badass: badass cops, badass bikers, badass strippers. Throw in some kiddie porn and it was time to say good bye to Disposable Souls. I'm sure there is an audience for this intense, soulless, dim-outlook kind of story, but not this guy.
November 13, 2017
Well, this was a very pleasant surprise. Exploring Nova Scotia for a few days before Bouchercon last month, I was keen to find, buy, and read some local crime fiction while travelling. But I struggled to find much until I discovered Phonse Jessome's Halifax-set debut while browsing the excellent Lexicon Books in the historic seaside town of Lunenburg.
There is a heck of a lot to like about this crime tale. In movie tagline parlance, it's like Harry Bosch meets Sons of Anarchy, a talented, maverick cop with a military background whose often off-side with his superiors and the politics of policing, heavily peppered with the outlaw life of 1 per centers.
But reducing it to a tagline would be a bit of an injustice.
Disposable Souls is dark yet thoughtful, packed with not only action but also authentic, fascinating characters and a good sense of place. A great, page-turning plot that had me completely absorbed, while never feeling 'breezy' or thin. There's substance here, on many levels. Overall, I loved it.
I learned after reading Disposable Souls that Jessome was an award-winning Canadian journalist, who'd suffered PTSD during a 35-year-career specialising in the darker side of human nature: he covered everything from war zones to international disasters to human trafficking to outlaw motorcycle gangs to extremely brutal local crimes. He'd also written two bestselling true crime books, but had given away the journalism when his PTSD flared seven years after diagnosis.
That perhaps explains his writing chops (though not every good journalist becomes a good novelist), and even more so the great authenticity Jessome brings to the characters, situations, and underlying issues in Disposable Souls. Even before I knew of Jessome's background, Disposable Souls just 'rang true' when it came to outlaw biker life, issues of mental health and PTSD, and various aspects of the collisions between cops, criminals, and citizens spanning different worlds and worldviews.
Things are far from black and white in Disposable Souls, even if some characters think that way. It's a book about the choices people make, the lifestyles they live (or portray), and how they deal with the shit that comes their way. It might have you questioning not just what is really true, but who are really the good guys or bad guys. Labels don't matter as much as actions.
I certainly hope this is just the beginning of Phonse Jessome's foray into crime novels.
Craig Sisterson is a lapsed lawyer who writes features and reviews for a range of magazines and newspapers in several countries. He's interviewed almost 200 mystery writers and discussed crime writing onstage at festivals on three continents, and on national radio and top podcasts. He has been a judge of the Ned Kelly Awards (Australia), the McIlvanney Prize (Scotland), and is founder of the Ngaio Marsh Awards (New Zealand). You can heckle him on Twitter: @craigsisterson
There is a heck of a lot to like about this crime tale. In movie tagline parlance, it's like Harry Bosch meets Sons of Anarchy, a talented, maverick cop with a military background whose often off-side with his superiors and the politics of policing, heavily peppered with the outlaw life of 1 per centers.
But reducing it to a tagline would be a bit of an injustice.
Disposable Souls is dark yet thoughtful, packed with not only action but also authentic, fascinating characters and a good sense of place. A great, page-turning plot that had me completely absorbed, while never feeling 'breezy' or thin. There's substance here, on many levels. Overall, I loved it.
I learned after reading Disposable Souls that Jessome was an award-winning Canadian journalist, who'd suffered PTSD during a 35-year-career specialising in the darker side of human nature: he covered everything from war zones to international disasters to human trafficking to outlaw motorcycle gangs to extremely brutal local crimes. He'd also written two bestselling true crime books, but had given away the journalism when his PTSD flared seven years after diagnosis.
That perhaps explains his writing chops (though not every good journalist becomes a good novelist), and even more so the great authenticity Jessome brings to the characters, situations, and underlying issues in Disposable Souls. Even before I knew of Jessome's background, Disposable Souls just 'rang true' when it came to outlaw biker life, issues of mental health and PTSD, and various aspects of the collisions between cops, criminals, and citizens spanning different worlds and worldviews.
Things are far from black and white in Disposable Souls, even if some characters think that way. It's a book about the choices people make, the lifestyles they live (or portray), and how they deal with the shit that comes their way. It might have you questioning not just what is really true, but who are really the good guys or bad guys. Labels don't matter as much as actions.
I certainly hope this is just the beginning of Phonse Jessome's foray into crime novels.
Craig Sisterson is a lapsed lawyer who writes features and reviews for a range of magazines and newspapers in several countries. He's interviewed almost 200 mystery writers and discussed crime writing onstage at festivals on three continents, and on national radio and top podcasts. He has been a judge of the Ned Kelly Awards (Australia), the McIlvanney Prize (Scotland), and is founder of the Ngaio Marsh Awards (New Zealand). You can heckle him on Twitter: @craigsisterson
August 10, 2020
I went into this hoping it would be good. Boy was I in for a treat. Phones did his homework, being a investigative journalist here in Halifax. His characterisation was amazing and everyone felt individual. The only part I found tricky was the names as there were first names, last names, Nick names, and rankings used to some characters. Aside from that this book flawless. I love it's based in Halifax and he takes you all over. I love that he isn't afraid to tackle the racism in the Halifax Regional Police, or the biker gangs that have their hold on HRM. I'm happy to give this book a 4/5 stars and will boast about how great this book is.
May 4, 2020
Compelling and complex, and doesn’t shy away from the evils of the modern age. It delves deeply into the effects of PTSD, outlaw bike culture, the illicit sex trade, and makes the characters and their problems seem real, even though you know it’s a work of fiction. I particularly recommend it to people who like me are born and raised in HRM for all the landmarks and history of the city it talks about.
March 2, 2017
Great fiction debut by Jessome! This is only available in Canada for some reason right now, so the publishers out there need to take a look at this book and get it published here. Created a amazon canada account, ordered it for my kindle, then transfered my account back to the US. Well worth the trouble of going through all that to be able to purchase this book. Great book, great characters and a dark gritty story just like i like em. Storyline was very entertaining, character backstory was very good as well, made for a well rounded character and could understand some of his actions better. Loved the book and look forward to reading more from him. Hope he finds a way to bring Cam back, could be a very nice series.
July 22, 2024
Painful read. Not good. Cliche city and a snoozefest!! Like 100 pages where the plot was just gone. Whatever man!
September 12, 2017
Quite raw and disturbing but Phonse seems to have captured the seedier side of Halifax. I couldn't put it down as I neared the end of the book
August 28, 2018
Cam is a police officer working in Halifax, NS. His father was the founder of the Stallions, a motorcycle club, which Cam used to be in and his brother, Gunner, is currently a VP. Cam had gotten married (then widowed), went to war in Afghanistan and as a prisoner was tortured. He had a hard time handling everything once he got home. His brother, Greg, a priest, straightened him out and he joined the police force. His former biker "brothers" hated him because he was now a cop and his new police "brothers" hate him because he is a former biker. He is paired up with Blair, a Mi'kmaw Mountie, who everyone is prejudiced against.
A TV preacher is found murdered near where Cam and Blair are assigned. As they dig deeper, they discover there may be ties back to the Stallions which puts Cam in a precarious position. The Stallions, including Gunner, don't want to help him and the police don't trust him.
This is the first book I've read by Phonse Jessome and I liked it. His name is familiar to me ... he is Nova Scotia journalist so that's probably why. The story was interesting and was intense and heavy duty. In addition to the story, there is a lot of information and I learned a lot about the relationship between the joint force of the police and Mounties in Halifax and motorcycle clubs.
The author doesn't hide the fact that the story takes place in Halifax and there are lots of references to locales (I've been so many of them). I was born in Nova Scotia and lived my first ten years in the Halifax area. In fact, my sister lives in Spryfield, where the "Litter Box Boys" reign and some of the action actually takes place about a five minute drive from her house.
I found the writing a bit dense at times, though ... there were a lot of long paragraphs that could have been broken up to make reading easier. One page, for example, was made up of just three paragraphs. As a head's up, there is swearing (lots of F-bombs) and violence.
I liked the characters. The friendship between Cam and Blair was obvious as was Cam's torment between his two worlds. Despite the differences between the three brothers (one is a cop, one is a bike and another is a priest) and their messed-up childhoods, they did care about each other.
I look forward to reading other books by this other. I understand there is supposed to be a sequel to this book coming out in the fall and I'll keep an eye out for it.
Blog review post: http://www.teenaintoronto.com/2018/08...
A TV preacher is found murdered near where Cam and Blair are assigned. As they dig deeper, they discover there may be ties back to the Stallions which puts Cam in a precarious position. The Stallions, including Gunner, don't want to help him and the police don't trust him.
This is the first book I've read by Phonse Jessome and I liked it. His name is familiar to me ... he is Nova Scotia journalist so that's probably why. The story was interesting and was intense and heavy duty. In addition to the story, there is a lot of information and I learned a lot about the relationship between the joint force of the police and Mounties in Halifax and motorcycle clubs.
The author doesn't hide the fact that the story takes place in Halifax and there are lots of references to locales (I've been so many of them). I was born in Nova Scotia and lived my first ten years in the Halifax area. In fact, my sister lives in Spryfield, where the "Litter Box Boys" reign and some of the action actually takes place about a five minute drive from her house.
I found the writing a bit dense at times, though ... there were a lot of long paragraphs that could have been broken up to make reading easier. One page, for example, was made up of just three paragraphs. As a head's up, there is swearing (lots of F-bombs) and violence.
I liked the characters. The friendship between Cam and Blair was obvious as was Cam's torment between his two worlds. Despite the differences between the three brothers (one is a cop, one is a bike and another is a priest) and their messed-up childhoods, they did care about each other.
I look forward to reading other books by this other. I understand there is supposed to be a sequel to this book coming out in the fall and I'll keep an eye out for it.
Blog review post: http://www.teenaintoronto.com/2018/08...
November 26, 2017
Jessome certainly did his research in penning this book and I was very impressed. The plot of the book was compelling and the characters were extremely well developed and easy to visualize. He wove the police, Motorcycle Clubs, organized religion, PTSD and the underside of Halifax into his storyline seemingly effortlessly. I often had to remind myself it was a work of fiction and not a true crime work of nonfiction.
Set in Halifax, where I reside, I found the book especially interesting.
This is a great read and I can readily recommend it.
Set in Halifax, where I reside, I found the book especially interesting.
This is a great read and I can readily recommend it.
February 15, 2017
Excellent, well worth the read, even with a pause to read some other books due at library sooner, such as "The Woods". Well worth the read; realistic Halifax mystery but could take place in any major city anywhere. Lots of plot twists; the ending leaves room for a sequel (I hope).
I don't think I have read the author's two previous books, and will now look for them. I see they are true crime books, vs fiction, so I'm not sure if I will pursue them. Even though Disposable Souls is fiction, it is surely based on the author's own experience and research as a journalist. Some things can be better presented as fiction.
I don't think I have read the author's two previous books, and will now look for them. I see they are true crime books, vs fiction, so I'm not sure if I will pursue them. Even though Disposable Souls is fiction, it is surely based on the author's own experience and research as a journalist. Some things can be better presented as fiction.
January 2, 2017
The subject matter of this crime novel is dark, and therefore likely not for everyone. The author portrays the seedier side of Halifax, but it has a ring of authenticity too it that I perhaps don't like to admit in my hometown.
This book is definitely well written. The story moves at a reasonable pace. I definitely enjoyed the concise description of places I am familiar with, and the terse summary of local history when necessary to the story. The main characters felt real. I was interested in Cam, Blair, Carla, Gunner, etc.
I believe Jessome plans to write another story with these characters. Any such novel will definitely make it to my to-be-read list.
This book is definitely well written. The story moves at a reasonable pace. I definitely enjoyed the concise description of places I am familiar with, and the terse summary of local history when necessary to the story. The main characters felt real. I was interested in Cam, Blair, Carla, Gunner, etc.
I believe Jessome plans to write another story with these characters. Any such novel will definitely make it to my to-be-read list.
December 29, 2016
WOW, what a debut for Phonse Jessome. Halifax cop Cam Neville and his partner, RCMP officer Blair Christmas, investigate when the dead body of a TV preacher turns up near the Satan's Stallions biker clubhouse, a club that Neville used to belong to. No longer trusted by his old biker brothers and certainly not fully trusted by other cops, Neville and Christmas walk into a dangerous world where good and evil are not clear at all. Very moving book. Loved it!
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October 15, 2016I enjoyed this book . I liked the references to Halifax as it is close to where I live. Phonse is a talented author. I hope this is the beginning of a series of novels from Phonse with these characters.
January 8, 2017
A page turner!
October 13, 2016
Great detective novel. Lots of mystery, and loved it had a Cape Breton connection! WTG Phonse!
April 28, 2017
I borrowed this book from a friend of mine. I enjoyed reading it. It had a good story to it. I like the variety of characters in it. It is my first book by this author. I hope to read more of his books.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews