Jimmy McSwain returns, but the question lingers, now that he has finally solved the fifteen-year-old murder of his NYPD cop-father, Joseph, who has he become? Busy concentrating on family issues, Jimmy hasn’t taken a new case in nearly three months, and when a call comes in from Philip Connelly, who wants proof of his wife, Myra’s, cheating, Jimmy is torn. Take the case, or say no. He rejects it, only to learn a week later that Philip has been found dead in a park on Staten Island. The police believe it was suicide, but Myra—a self-admitted adulteress—is convinced he was murdered. Jimmy agrees to take the case. But it seems his decision to rejoin the world has also affected the other areas of his life: his sister is facing a health crisis, an old friend from his father’s past has resurfaced, and his lover, Captain Francis X. Frisano, is working a difficult case in Chelsea where gay men are being attacked. If that wasn’t enough, Jimmy is on the hunt to bring down his new nemesis, the criminal mastermind Mr. Wu-Tin. A fire at one of his warehouses stirs fear in Jimmy that the man is trying to destroy evidence of his crimes. That’s when life throws him a twist, and suddenly Jimmy feels that just as he’s hoping to find answers, new mysteries emerge about whether the path he’s on leads to a fresh start, or a fresh kill.
ADAM CARPENTER is the best-selling author of many titles of gay mystery, intrigue, romance, and erotica.
His series featuring P.I. Jimmy McSwain is, in order: HIDDEN IDENTITY, CRIME WAVE, STAGE FRIGHT. GUARDIAN ANGEL, FOREVER HAUNT, FRESH KILL, SECOND SHOT, FALSE JUSTICE and JERSEY SCORE, co-written with Joseph Pittman.
Jimmy McSwain's Early Files features SILVER SHIELD, HEART BEAT, DOUBLE EDGE, and the forthcoming BURIAL PLOT.
Adam's is also the author of the soapy drama, "The Cane's Inlet Mystery" trilogy: SCANDALOUS LIES, SINISTER MOTIVES, and SUSPICIOUS TRUTHS.
He is also the author of the "Edenwood Saga" trilogy, EDEN'S PAST, EDEN'S PRESENT, and EDEN'S FUTURE, now back-in-print.
The European Flings Quartet includes the short story, PASSPORT TO A FLING, PASSION IN PARIS, RAPTURE IN ROME, LUST IN LONDON, and NUPTIALS IN NICE, all to be reissued in 2025.
I love me some Jimmy McSwain! His story continues with this installment picking up where the last one left off. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have much time to experience the closure solving the cold case of his father’s death before he is pulled into another case. After turning down a simple cheating spouse case and that person ends up dead, Jimmy’s spidey senses are ignited and he can’t help but accept the widow’s plea for help.
As with all things Jimmy, nothing is every very simple. He follows the clues which lead to more questions, dead bodies and a spider web of intrigue circling around with him in the middle. Much of the story is about Jimmy trying to get to the bottom of things and solve one case that quickly turns into something else entirely.
In the meantime, Jimmy is dealing with his sister’s recovery and the guilt surrounding her injuries. He is forced to reflect on life as he takes care of his new nephew which, in turn, causes him to look at his own relationship with Frisano. That’s a whole nother can of worms, as pretty much as been from the get go. Captain Frank is dealing with some things of his own, a new case involving a gay bashing has him questioning his own life as a closeted police captain. Unfortunately, it is easy to see that he and Jimmy are beginning to head in different directions. I have always liked Captain Frank, although his actions in this installment have tested those feelings big time. Luckily, Jimmy is a pretty confident, self-sufficient and comfortable in his independent ways, some of the qualities I’ve come to love about him.
Although the current case is solved, there is still trouble nipping at Jimmy’s heels. He doesn’t hesitate to make waves, as we have learned over the years with his various cases. I hope we will continue to see more of Jimmy, his family and his adventures, as I have looked forward to each and every one.
Not continuing the series. It's just too dramatic when it doesn't need to be. The narration got annoying and I can't say if the story would have been better read vice listened. This ends on a cliffhanger of sorts so be warned. Also, the ending is dumb .
Fresh Kill (Jimmy McSwain #6) By Adam Carpenter MLR Press, 2019 Four stars
“He wanted to send a message to the world. Two men could be happy, and no one had the right to challenge that…”
Jimmy McSwain has finally solved his greatest case, the murder that has haunted him all his adult life.
So, everything’s going to be smooth sailing, right?
No.
This book, like the latest in Marshall Thornton’s Nick Nowak series, has a surprise sucker-punch as a finale. Damn.
Jimmy McSwain, the millennial Sam Spade, or maybe a gay Joe Friday (shudder), has taken some months off, to sit by his older sister’s side as she recovers from a gunshot to the head; and to spend time with his younger sister’s baby boy Joey, named for his murdered father. He has stopped looking for truth for a while in order to celebrate life, the future, his feisty Irish Hell’s Kitchen family. He’s also working on his relationship with semi-closeted police captain Frank Frisano, and it seems to be going well.
Then Jimmy learns that a client he turned down over the phone has been found dead in a park on Staten Island, and he is hired by the client’s widow to prove that it wasn’t suicide, but murder. At the same time, Frank Frisano is shaken by a gay-bashing turned murder in Chelsea, the heart of the gay community where he lives and works.
Jimmy finds himself caught between two geographic poles – the upstate rehab center where his sister is recuperating, and the alien southern tip of Staten Island, where his new case is unfolding in increasingly bizarre and disconcerting ways.
On the surface, McSwain is so different form Thornton’s Nick Nowak – different generation, different place in history, different city. But the parallels are there. Jimmy thinks he’s healed, but gradually begins to understand that his wounds run deep. Neither his case nor his psyche are going to be simple fixes, and as Jimmy begins to see old enemies in unfamiliar places, he also notices Frisano acting differently, fretting over the gay-bashing with a depth of emotion so unlike the ambitious young policeman Jimmy has come to know and love.
As always, Adam Carpenter is true to his characters. He knows the city, its rhythms and neighborhoods, and that gives a constant ring of authenticity to his narrative. Jimmy McSwain is a fascinating guy, both old-style and completely contemporary. He actually represents a New York City that is slowing fading away, and the author treats him with endless affection and respect.
But, as we are reminded, this is really the beginning of a new series, and Carpenter isn’t going to let any of us – reader or fictional actor in his drama – off easy. I’m in too deep to stop, but it’s going to hurt.
[Note: I must point out rather a lot of sloppy editing mistakes. The author needs to get his manuscript vetted more thoroughly.]
The ending ripped out my heart and stomped it to the ground. I was going to date this 4 stars because while it's just as enjoyable as the other, it's not the greatest I have read and then I got to the end and almost cried. I need the next one NOW
It’s a new dawn for Jimmy McSwain. No longer is his father’s unsolved murder haunting him. But that doesn’t mean all is well in his life. The man who ordered the hit that put his sister Mallory in hospital is still out there. Lurking. Waiting. And he wants nothing more than to bring him down once and for all. Jimmy being Jimmy of course gets talked into a case. A case of what appears to be suicides. Something he doesn’t believe. And when his current case crosses paths with his sisters’ the sense of urgency grow exponentially – as does the danger. The case has many twists and turs and will have you guessing and re-checking what you think you know and nothing makes me happier in a mystery than to be on the bit clueless side trying to connect all the dots. A few things I reluctantly saw coming – others I did not. It’s nice not to have all the answers, to be able to be surprised, nowadays it seems to be the rare book that has that effect on me.
On a more personal note; in theory now would be the time for Jimmy and Frisano to fully commit to the relationship they’ve been dancing around since book one. The obstacles that kept them apart were no more. So it was time for them to move forward. However, things are on shake grounds for our two lovers and not at all the bliss that I expected going into this book. On the one hand I want Jimmy to have some happiness, to settle in bliss for at least a little while before trials start up again. On the other, life is messy, it’s unpredictable and I’m overjoyed when an author decides to take a turn into the unexpected and add some trouble – and not for the sake of it either.
This series isn’t m/m romances, they are gay fiction, and I think it’s an important distinction to make. It’s not sweet and fluffy, it’s not romantic or even happy most of the time. At times it can even be harsh and brutal. But that’s also what makes them so great and in my mind refreshing. They come with a hefty dose of reality and sometimes that’s just what you need.
Joel Leslie did a great performance of this book. He and the listener with him, lived in Hell’s Kitchen with Jimmy. Waking beside Mallory’s bed. Desperately searching for answers, for justice. Leslie makes you feel the emotions of the characters; the tension between Jimmy and Frisano, not knowing if this was the beginning of the end or just a rough path they had to muddle through and be stronger for it in the end. The need to bring Wu-Tin down, and all the love he had for his family. Leslie knows his craft and it shows.
I hope Carpenter will be adding to the series, there is much more to be explored in this world and I would love to spend more time in Hell’s Kitchen with the gang I’ve come to care so much about.
A copy of this book was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review
It's been a long time coming but Adam Carpenter delivers another emotional, suspenseful, and complex mystery in The Jimmy McSwain Files. He takes us once again on the subways of NYC and this time the ferry to Staten Island. His writing and story telling through Jimmy's eyes is superb.
After so many emotional ups and downs for Jimmy, he's feels it's time to get back to being a PI and winds up taking a case that he actually refused. He still finds the NYPD, no matter what precinct, there's still corruption and he doesn't even realize he's being used. Jimmy finds no matter what cases he solves there's still a loose end that's out of reach. I have a very short list of characters that I get really involved in and Jimmy McSwain has always touched my heart. He remains loyal to his family, his father's old friends Ralphie and John Tolliver. His feelings for Frisano keep growing, at least for him. Baby Joey is a new bright spot in Jimmy's life, along with the recovery of Mallory. Jimmy deserves so much more in life but it seems when things look up there's always a down side. As for Frank Frisano, he doesn't deserve Jimmy. This probably won't happen but I hope Frisano moves on and Jimmy finds someone more deserving.
After the shocking ending in Forever Haunt, Jimmy has taking time off to stay close to his family. Sitting by his sister's hospital bed takes a lot of his time, but he also manages to spend time with his nephew Joey whom has become an endless source of joy in his life.
Three months had gone by, and Jimmy thinks that it's time to find a new case. Except the man calling? He wants proof that his wife is cheating. Jimmy says no. But then, a week later, the wife calls: his husband is dead. A suicide, says the police. Murder, she says. Jimmy takes the case.
Soon, Jimmy is entangled in a web of lies and deception, one that has Mr. Wu-Tin name write all over it. Barone is warning him off from Wu-Tin's case; Staten Island's police seems to keen to label as suicide all the deaths while the bodies keep piling and Jimmy is in real danger of geting killed by Wu-Tin's goons.
Meanwhile, Frank is badly shaken by a gay-bashing case in which one of the victims died; and their relationship, which should be in a good place, isn't.
Jimmy is beginning to understand that he isn't as healed as he thought he was, that the wound caused by his father's death runs deep. And Jonathan Tolliver is now in New York. Alone. Another Joseph McSwain's partner, with whom share personal and business confidences...
The story is really absorving, there are so many twist and turns that I got dizzy, and the end of the case is surprising... in a good way.
Now, when it comes to Jimmy's personal life
A fantastic beginning, even as my heart was broken at the end.
It was a great pleasure coming back to this series. It's been almost three years since I've encountered this world, and probably my all time favourite main character Jimmy McSwain. I've always thought this series was an almost perfect series. Besides the reason behind such a long gap between my reading of its books. And that would be it's romance.
This series has always seemed to have a romance just because. I've never felt there was a some deep connection between Jimmy and Frank, I don't think I ever really got to know Frank, well before this book. I only read Gay Romances, and their being a relationship between Frank and Jimmy was the reason why I got in to this series. And from the moment Frank was introduced, I just wished he wasn't there. Maybe it took me three years of maturing, or just this book lacked Frank's presence, but this was probably a perfect book for me.
I don't know if it's was my long time away from the mystery genre or what, but from maybe the 50% point, I just sat in the same position and read the book till the end. Jimmy McSwain never seems to have an uneventful moment to enjoy some peace, and the Fresh Kill case definitely kept him on his feet. From investigating two murders, to being the suspect of two other but related murders, for a man that seems to want to stay away from the NYPD, you cant be help but think, why not just bite the bullet and join the law enformemt division with the amount of encounters he has with the law. Cant wait to see what awaits him in the following books.
I've fallen in love with your writing style Mr. Carpenter. I've seen a lot of lazy writing in the MM Romance genre, with writers just writing to churn some books out for profit. I did not see such here. Either just an innate way words, or some nights hugging a thesaurus, this was truly beautiful written. I'll be back again with the next book. Hope to enjoy the next as much as this.
Thanks for gifting me with this book, please don't let me down in the future, you'll probably heat from me in the future if you do.
A crime/private detective novel featuring a gay PI (this is not a romance, though there is a romance involved in the story line). All of the books in the series are well-written: while they involve standard tropes for the genre, the use of a cast of well-developed characters to create a complex world makes these books quite unique. Jimmy McSwain, the MC, is very much an individual gay man, not falling into any of the usual stereotypes, and it is a pleasure to read of his highs and lows.
While I have enjoyed all of the volumes in this series, this one leaves me with mixed feelings. I am beginning to feel Adam Carpenter needs to conclude this series. Since this novel leaves a lot of questions unanswered, there does need to be another volume (which, as I understand it, is currently being written as of the time of this review). However, I feel that there comes a point where a character has been fully explored and further sequels lessen the character. So, as much as I love this series, I hope the seventh volume is the finale.
Driven NY PI Jimmy McSwain tackles a case where an apparent suicide is anything but and plays to his strength: upsetting the apple cart. The client hires Jimmy to look into the death of her husband: could it be her, the boyfriend, the lover, or even the police? This was a fascinating conspiracy case and it was hugely satisfying not knowing who to trust. I wondered if this series would lose its edge with the resolution of his father’s death in the previous book, but in the usual melancholy style of this series, Jimmy butts heads with fate and comes off with a few wins, a few losses, and a lot of cuts and bruises … some romance aficionados may not be pleased. Audio artiste Joel Leslie voices Asian mobsters, New Yorkers, and Irish accents with his usual skill and flair!
It’s new and old all together! Jimmy is back, so all is good again and this time with the evil Wu Tan I guess to be the ongoing protagonist. In his previous style, he takes on an apparent suicide turned murder but all is not as it seems as he finds out at the end - friends and foe alike in the NYPD are using Jimmy. Lots of introspection again, especially as Mallory recovers. Baby Joey is the silent star and Jimmy’s solace. I was excited for Frank and Jimmy but now the cracks are showing and can we all come back from the last sighting of Frank? Who knows, even if Jimmy can, will I forgive??!!
I picked this book up looking for a good mystery and I got that and so much more. The story works as a stand alone but I guarantee that after reading this you'll be grabbing the first books in the series. I genuinely like Jimmy and his hang dog way of looking at life. I felt sad for him at the end but he'll pull it together and forge ahead. Light on the sex which worked as the book was definitely not a romance. Highly recommend!
Wow, this book was emotionally truly tragic for Jimmy McSwain. Sure Jimmy got a new mysterious case he worked on, which kept him really busy and mostly away from Captain Francis X. Frisano. What's Captain Francis X. Frisano going through I have no idea, , and I don't care if I consider what he was doing. In overall, what a sad, sad sight to look at. This ending even broken my heart, so sad!