When Last Seen Alive

Aaron Gunner #5

by Gar Anthony Haywood

An encounter at the Million Man March sucks Gunner into an ice-cold missing persons caseElroy Covington should have run. He had traveled to the Million Man March in Washington, DC, looking forward to a new city and new faces. Then in a Dupont Circle restaurant, a twist of fate brought him face to face with a man from his long-forgotten past. Instead of running, Elroy said hello. He never made it home. Eight months later, Elroy’s sister shows up in the Los Angeles office of private detective Aaron Gunner, who traded business cards with Elroy at the march and promptly forgot they ever met. Elroy’s last known location was Los Angeles, and his sister thinks he was coming to see the detective. As he tries to warm up Elroy’s frigid trail, Gunner uncovers ties to a black militant group. The time for brotherhood is over, and finding the vanished marcher will mean getting tough.

Genres: Mystery

293 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 29, 1997

About the author

aka Ray Shannon.

Gar Anthony Harwood also writes as Ray Shannon. He has won the Shamus and Anthony Award for his mystery fiction. He writes stand-alone novels and short-stories as well as series. He has also written for the Los Angeles Times and the New York Times, written scripts for television drama series (e.g. New York Undercover and the District) and Movies of the Week for ABC. He is a member of the Mystery Writers of America.

Reviews

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aaron Gunner takes on two cases that both result in violence towards him and his associate. He’s doing surveillance on a cheating husband who just happens to be a local councilman. He hires a young photography student to do the surveillance while he focuses on a missing person case. The missing person case quickly escalates into a guy with a false identity, a disgraced journalist. This journalist has been targeted by a group of black militants for his behavior. Lots of action with twists and distractions to include an amorous hookup with a client and taking on a puppy while being shot at and almost burned to death. The FBI gets involved. And the militants have a score to settle with Gunner. I’m ready for the next adventure.

[George · Rating 5 out of 5]

#5 in the Black Las Angeles private investigator Aaron Gunner mystery series.

A man, Elroy Covington, disappears at the Million Man March in Washington, D.C. only to reappear and then disappear agin in Los Angeles. The man’s sister hires Gunner to locate her brother and he soons finds himself tangling with black extremists and the FBI. This isn't just another missing persons case as there is much more to Covington than Gunner has been told which leads to more danger than he realizes.

On top of this, Gunner is all ready involved in investigating an L.A. city councilman which has turned into a life threatening investigation.

So there’s two mysteries rolled into one novel whose end caught me by surprise.

[Laurie D'ghent · Rating 1 out of 5]

Gave up 45 pages in. The constant swearing was so annoying that I couldn't even get into the story itself.

[Lori · Rating 2 out of 5]

A nice mystery series. Not a thriller, just mystery. This is the first one I have read.
P.S. - 2 stars is a good rating for a genre book.