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A Jack Story #4
The Concrete Goodbye: Being a detective in a city of superheroes can be Hell
Greed, Sex, Murder, and Superheroes.
Blackmailing the world’s first superhero can be deadly.
Jack Story is a Private Detective in a city full of superheroes.
Aging WWII super solider Major Victory is being blackmailed. The Major’s granddaughter, the apple of his eye, is an unwitting star of a sex tape. If the Major doesn’t pay up, the world gets to see what his little darling gets up to at night. The Major wants Jack to make the blackmail stop. Preferably with lots of pain being inflicted on the blackmailer.
Jack takes the job.
But when Jack starts digging into the case things turn deadly. There is an explosion downtown that levels a concrete building and kills a young superhero. The granddaughter insists the bomb was really meant her and not her best friend. That same friend shows up in Jack’s office hours after the explosion, claiming she was the target all along. She demands that Jack find out who’s responsible before disappearing into the night.
Can Jack find who is behind the blackmail and the bombing before others die? But when Jack digs deeper he discovers something disturbing- what if Major Victory is behind it all? The sex tape. The blackmail. The bombing. The murder. What if the world's first superhero was trying to murder his own granddaughter?
Sometimes being a detective in a city full of superheroes can be Hell.
Blackmailing the world’s first superhero can be deadly.
Jack Story is a Private Detective in a city full of superheroes.
Aging WWII super solider Major Victory is being blackmailed. The Major’s granddaughter, the apple of his eye, is an unwitting star of a sex tape. If the Major doesn’t pay up, the world gets to see what his little darling gets up to at night. The Major wants Jack to make the blackmail stop. Preferably with lots of pain being inflicted on the blackmailer.
Jack takes the job.
But when Jack starts digging into the case things turn deadly. There is an explosion downtown that levels a concrete building and kills a young superhero. The granddaughter insists the bomb was really meant her and not her best friend. That same friend shows up in Jack’s office hours after the explosion, claiming she was the target all along. She demands that Jack find out who’s responsible before disappearing into the night.
Can Jack find who is behind the blackmail and the bombing before others die? But when Jack digs deeper he discovers something disturbing- what if Major Victory is behind it all? The sex tape. The blackmail. The bombing. The murder. What if the world's first superhero was trying to murder his own granddaughter?
Sometimes being a detective in a city full of superheroes can be Hell.
- GenresFiction
217 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 13, 2017
4 people are currently reading
14 people want to read
About the author
W.H. Lock
16 books21 followersSamuel Goldwyn thought that no one should write their autobiography until after they were dead. Kajol rather famously said that only self-obsessed people write autobiographies. Mia Farrow said that the only thing she enjoyed writing was her autobiography. JM Coetzee said that all writing is autobiographical. Some unknown writer said that writing an autobiography was akin to using quotes in an essay.
I'm not really sure what they meant by that.
But what about me?
Well, I was born in Chicago. I spent my childhood in rural Illinois, running in the endless cornfields. Just before I made it into puberty, my mother moved my sister and I to Minneapolis. I spent my formative angsty teen years in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.
Did you know there's more than 10,000 lakes in Minnesota? Yeah, they've only actually named 10,000 them. There are still lakes out there. Unnamed lakes. Who knows what lurks in them...
From there I joined the Army. I was a driver of an M1-A1 tank. Yeah, it was cool. I ran over trees!! Shortly after leaving the service, I met a nice young woman and we moved to Texas. We've been together ever since. We have two boys with hair like sunshine, eyes that match the sky, and love nothing more than adventure. I've worked in comic book shops, big box retail stores, major telecoms, boutique advertising companies, and as a freelance copy writer.
Oh, and I'm allergic to cats, dogs, birds, molds, grasses, and just about 87% of the planet.
I'm not really sure what they meant by that.
But what about me?
Well, I was born in Chicago. I spent my childhood in rural Illinois, running in the endless cornfields. Just before I made it into puberty, my mother moved my sister and I to Minneapolis. I spent my formative angsty teen years in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.
Did you know there's more than 10,000 lakes in Minnesota? Yeah, they've only actually named 10,000 them. There are still lakes out there. Unnamed lakes. Who knows what lurks in them...
From there I joined the Army. I was a driver of an M1-A1 tank. Yeah, it was cool. I ran over trees!! Shortly after leaving the service, I met a nice young woman and we moved to Texas. We've been together ever since. We have two boys with hair like sunshine, eyes that match the sky, and love nothing more than adventure. I've worked in comic book shops, big box retail stores, major telecoms, boutique advertising companies, and as a freelance copy writer.
Oh, and I'm allergic to cats, dogs, birds, molds, grasses, and just about 87% of the planet.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
July 30, 2017
The Concrete Goodbye by W. H. Lock is a Crime/Suspense novel that doesn't fail to feed the curious minds. Of course, it is a little different from the others, it has an extra ingredient of superheroes which makes it all the more fun and exciting.
Jack Story is a private detective in Sterling City which also happens to be a city of superheroes. He is called upon to find the perpetrators behind the blackmail of Major Victory, a big shot league boss. His granddaughter is involved in a mess and if Major doesn't agree to their terms, it will be all out in the open. He is also investigating a case where a young emerging actor is blamed for a murder. But with all the superheroes around, Jack's work is not easy, to say the least. As he digs deeper into the case, he finds shocking evidences that could well be leading to the unexpected. The question to be asked is, can the superheroes be trusted after all?
The Concrete Goodbye is a fast paced and a classic who-dun-it. The narrative is impressive, with to the point references. It has a strong and a well developed protagonist. Jack Story's character keeps rising from its lows no matter how difficult the situation may seem. The book is a quick read with adequate humor and plenty of inquisitiveness.
Overall, I would say that The Concrete Goodbye is a well written suspense that is thoroughly enjoyable and keeps the readers on edge till the true culprit is revealed. Definitely recommended for who-dun-it fans.
Jack Story is a private detective in Sterling City which also happens to be a city of superheroes. He is called upon to find the perpetrators behind the blackmail of Major Victory, a big shot league boss. His granddaughter is involved in a mess and if Major doesn't agree to their terms, it will be all out in the open. He is also investigating a case where a young emerging actor is blamed for a murder. But with all the superheroes around, Jack's work is not easy, to say the least. As he digs deeper into the case, he finds shocking evidences that could well be leading to the unexpected. The question to be asked is, can the superheroes be trusted after all?
The Concrete Goodbye is a fast paced and a classic who-dun-it. The narrative is impressive, with to the point references. It has a strong and a well developed protagonist. Jack Story's character keeps rising from its lows no matter how difficult the situation may seem. The book is a quick read with adequate humor and plenty of inquisitiveness.
Overall, I would say that The Concrete Goodbye is a well written suspense that is thoroughly enjoyable and keeps the readers on edge till the true culprit is revealed. Definitely recommended for who-dun-it fans.
May 29, 2017
"This ain't the comic books, kid."
Sterling City, a place of superheroes, but unlike others in that there kids train to develope their abilities, hoping to be picked up by one of the big leagues, and where the "matches were strictly controlled", either by the Guild of Heroes or the Latrocinium, the Rebel Council, who regulated not only what could be done but also powers used, the equipment available and, even, the sorts of costumes to be worn. All rather like organised team games. And the bosses of the biggest teams were also the biggest crime lords.
And in this city, meet Jack Story. No superpowers, unless a certain sort of immortality in that he could be killed but came back again afterwards. That, and a real gift for violence.
Story is hired to find the person trying to blackmail one of the biggest of the bosses then by another to prove the innocence of a young wannabe hero accused of murder. Finally a third offer he's not expected to refuse, to find that same man guilty. Story roams the city in a Raymond Chandler style noir, drinking, attracting ladies and generally lashing out at everyone. All good fun although, towards the latter part of the book this reader was beginning to find his ability to outwit the muscle ranged against him rather wearing, so much so that I almost felt like cheering when, single handedly he's briefly bettered by one of them.
The book is well written in a noir style with shortish, punchy sentences and lots of sardonic humour but is spoiled by the poor proof reading which has left numerous typos ('tings' instead of things, 'book' rather than block and editable - oh, the irony - in place of edible, to mention a very few). Nothing drastic but very annoying with their frequency. The story itself is fairly unimportant but is still a swirling cloak of character based mystery. Good fun, but don't try too hard to follow any sort of logical plot.
If you love superhero books, this is an interesting one to add to the collection. Easy to read, often amusing and with a different take on what it means to be an hero. My thanks to Book Review 22, from whom I received a free, no strings attached copy of The Concrete Goodbye. It was fun.
Sterling City, a place of superheroes, but unlike others in that there kids train to develope their abilities, hoping to be picked up by one of the big leagues, and where the "matches were strictly controlled", either by the Guild of Heroes or the Latrocinium, the Rebel Council, who regulated not only what could be done but also powers used, the equipment available and, even, the sorts of costumes to be worn. All rather like organised team games. And the bosses of the biggest teams were also the biggest crime lords.
And in this city, meet Jack Story. No superpowers, unless a certain sort of immortality in that he could be killed but came back again afterwards. That, and a real gift for violence.
Story is hired to find the person trying to blackmail one of the biggest of the bosses then by another to prove the innocence of a young wannabe hero accused of murder. Finally a third offer he's not expected to refuse, to find that same man guilty. Story roams the city in a Raymond Chandler style noir, drinking, attracting ladies and generally lashing out at everyone. All good fun although, towards the latter part of the book this reader was beginning to find his ability to outwit the muscle ranged against him rather wearing, so much so that I almost felt like cheering when, single handedly he's briefly bettered by one of them.
The book is well written in a noir style with shortish, punchy sentences and lots of sardonic humour but is spoiled by the poor proof reading which has left numerous typos ('tings' instead of things, 'book' rather than block and editable - oh, the irony - in place of edible, to mention a very few). Nothing drastic but very annoying with their frequency. The story itself is fairly unimportant but is still a swirling cloak of character based mystery. Good fun, but don't try too hard to follow any sort of logical plot.
If you love superhero books, this is an interesting one to add to the collection. Easy to read, often amusing and with a different take on what it means to be an hero. My thanks to Book Review 22, from whom I received a free, no strings attached copy of The Concrete Goodbye. It was fun.
December 18, 2017
Noir detective in a city of superheroes. I like both, so unsurprisingly, I liked this. Like many other superhero settings, it assumes that the heroes and villains have become more like showmen or wrestling characters than true criminals and law enforcers; they set up storylines to entertain the public and make money.
But you don't get money involved without things going a bit shady; Jack Story, a private detective with old connections to some on either side of the fence, actually deals with real crime. So when he's hired to look into a little bit of blackmail aimed at the most prominent hero in the world's family, he's got a lot of alleys to walk down and discover trouble in.
But you don't get money involved without things going a bit shady; Jack Story, a private detective with old connections to some on either side of the fence, actually deals with real crime. So when he's hired to look into a little bit of blackmail aimed at the most prominent hero in the world's family, he's got a lot of alleys to walk down and discover trouble in.
March 5, 2022
Finally a novel about Jack
There is a tone change for Jack in this novel. The story is darker with more violence and no good guys. The heroes, villains,monsters, cops and even Jack are reminiscent of an adventure in DC's Gotham City with Bart a good guy in sight. There are a number of editing errors but not so many as to make the book unreadable. Overall, while not great, this is a decent novel to read if you like the idea of an old fashioned detective surviving the dark underbelly of heroes and villains.
There is a tone change for Jack in this novel. The story is darker with more violence and no good guys. The heroes, villains,monsters, cops and even Jack are reminiscent of an adventure in DC's Gotham City with Bart a good guy in sight. There are a number of editing errors but not so many as to make the book unreadable. Overall, while not great, this is a decent novel to read if you like the idea of an old fashioned detective surviving the dark underbelly of heroes and villains.
June 4, 2017
With all the extreme action of a comic book in prose, this book provides a romp through an extreme menagerie of wild and crazy characters. Jack Story is full-blown stereotype of the lone detective, bouncing off a combination of regular humans and costumed superheroes, as he is summoned to find the identity of a blackmailer. The book is a quick read, filled with laughs and groans as Jack encounters a sideshow of freaks of every description. Definitely enjoyable.
May 9, 2017
Phillip Marlowe meets Stan Lee in this interesting mystery. A very likeable detective, who is somewhat mysterious himself, makes The Concrete Goodbye quite a good read.
May 20, 2017
A dark twisty novel that leaves you breathless to find out what happens. Excellent book by a super author. Received an ARC and reviewing because I wish to
March 20, 2017
Great P.I. novel!
I've read the short Jack Story books, so I was excited to read a longer version. This book did not disappoint! If you like dark twisty books with noir flair (and superheroes), you need to check out this out. Great characters, well-written and plotted. I received an ARC copy of the book and this is my voluntary review.
I've read the short Jack Story books, so I was excited to read a longer version. This book did not disappoint! If you like dark twisty books with noir flair (and superheroes), you need to check out this out. Great characters, well-written and plotted. I received an ARC copy of the book and this is my voluntary review.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews