Red Wing

by John McGauley

A romance, mystery and thriller, that will appeal especially to senior citizens, but a good read for those of all ages. An aging sheriff's deputy nearing retirement runs over a dog while traveling through a small Indiana town on his way back to his home in Kansas. He meets the local police chief, a woman nearly his own age. His car is broken, and he's stranded in the town. There the story begins, unfolding into a budding relationship with the police chief. A one-night stay at her house extends to the next day, and the next. Meanwhile, a clandestine drug ring goes about its business in the area, part of a state-wide gang of dealers. Two of the local dealers have a falling out, and things start to spin out of control. Violence abounds, and all seems puzzling to authorities, including the two aging cops who in just the span of a few days discover their deep attraction for each other. A romance, but a thrilling whodunit, filled with rich characters carefully portrayed and dialogue that would be fitting for a stage play. The ending has twists and turns the reader won't expect, with an exciting conclusion. This is not your typical suspense or romance novel, with cutout characters and unrealistic events, but a well-told story with believable people. It's a story illustrating that even though someone may be reaching retirement age, they're still very capable of doing their jobs, changing their lives, and finding meaningful relationships. An excellent choice, and at a length that makes it a good two-night, curl-up-in-your-bed read.

215 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 17, 2018

Reviews

[Shari Ring Wolf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast read, mostly dialogue

This book could have been a screenplay. Well, maybe… I’ve never actually seen a screenplay, lol. But it was mostly dialogue, and rather ingenious the way the reader could tell exactly what was going on, the motives, etc., just through dialogue! This way of writing was probably instrumental in this being a quick read.
When it wasn’t dialogue, it was the thoughts of the lead male character. It kept the reader in the moment, no explaining background in rhetoric. I read a lot, and I don’t think I’ve ever experienced this style of storytelling, ever. It was a nice change.

I had trouble keeping track of the characters. I don’t know if this is to be attributed to my very poor memory and the fact that I put the book away for awhile, after the characters had just been introduced. Or maybe there were too many characters introduced in a short period of time. I was glad for the Kindle feature that allowed me to search the book for names or whatever I highlight. (I was adamantly against ebooks for a long time! I stubbornly refused to let go of the paper copy in my hands as I read. I used to love being surrounded by my bookshelves full of hard copy books. Now I’m all about Kindle and it’s features. Book reading is a whole ‘nother experience! Downsizing starts a lot of new stuff in my oldish life. *smile*)

So overall, this was a nice break, a new reading experience as well. It features main characters in a more mature stage of life than most crime or police procedural novels. Being of early retirement age, I enjoyed that aspect immensely.

Good plot, nice setting, professionally written. While the story is short for a novel, and one can read it in a couple of sessions, I found the lifestyle pace of the characters to be nicely slowed down a bit. Active lives, but no crazy hard core workouts, running at dawn, or hard drinking. No relationship drama. I liked that, too.
I will be reading more of this author’s unique work.

[D. E. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A JMG. Mystery Thriller That Takes Place in and Around FT. Wayne, IND/A Sudden Drop Off the Freeway on the Way West Kansas has Numerous Surprises

JMG. has. penned another of his numerous fictional novels about the old the old folks, which has many twist and turns in and out of law enforcement while trying g to determine who is operating g the drug ring in Southern Indiana. Besides the twist and turns there is humor between two people and there is a shocking surprise ending. This is a excellent read for the genre.....DEHS

[Lawanda Reed · Rating 3 out of 5]

Confusing

He didn't introduce names of characters soon enough. I got confused about who was who. In the end, I didn't get the real fist of the story except it was about drug smuggling.

[Jane C. Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Red Wing by John McGauley

Accidents are usually tragic but sometimes a story evolves. Small towns make a world of difference how people live and what's important to them. Enjoy Red Wing , a small town!

[carolyn p goldsborough · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read. Good speed and lots of twists and turns.

Recommend to anyone who likes adventure and intrigue. Captivating and riveting. Keeps one’s attention and anxious to pick the story back up.

[LINDA L PAQUETTE · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting!