The Side Hustle

The 509 Crime Stories #1

by Colin Conway

Jacob Kidwell, a young man seemingly on the rise, is found dead at the bottom of his stairs. There is strange, unexplained bruising which doesn’t coincide with his fall.

Could his death simply have been an accident or was it something more sinister?

That is the question that Major Crimes Detectives Quinn Delaney and Marci Burkett must answer. While they search for the truth, someone else is also determined to uncover what really happened to Kidwell. He’s sticking his nose where it doesn’t belong and it’s getting noticed by the wrong people and causing problems for Delaney and Burkett.

Secrets, lies, and double crosses are exposed as the detectives work to discover the truth about Jacob Kidwell’s life. All the while, Quinn Delaney struggles to hide his own secret that threatens to derail the investigation and potentially his career.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Amazon, Suspense, Thriller, Mystery Thriller

354 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 4, 2019

About the author

Are you on BookBub? You can follow Colin there at: www.bookbub.com/profile/colin-conway

Colin Conway is the creator of the 509 Crime Stories, a series of novels set in Eastern Washington with revolving lead characters. They are standalone tales and can be read in any order.

He also created the Cozy Up series which pushes the envelope of the cozy genre. Libby Klein, author of the Poppy McAllister series, says Cozy Up to Death is “Not your grandma’s cozy.”

Colin co-authored the Charlie-316 series. The first novel in the series, Charlie-316, is a political/crime thriller that has been described as “riveting and compulsively readable,” “the real deal,” and “the ultimate ride-along.”

He served in the U.S. Army and later was an officer of the Spokane Police Department. He's owned a laundromat, invested in a bar, and ran a karate school. Besides writing crime fiction, he is a commercial real estate broker.

Colin lives with his beautiful girlfriend, three wonderful children, and a codependent Vizsla that rules their world.

Reviews

[Colin Conway · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, since I’m going to review my book, The Side Hustle, we should probably get some things out of the way.

First, it’s obviously a five-star review. There’s no question about that, right? I mean, how could I not give my own book the best rating possible? I’m not even going to feel embarrassed about it. Will you feel bad about it when you give this book a five-star review? No. Therefore, why should I?

Besides, this isn’t a job interview where the boss asks you that totally b.s. question, “Tell me what you could have done better this year.”

“Nothing,” should be everyone’s immediate response. “I did perfect. Now, give me a raise.”

Next, this is a crime fiction novel unlike any you’ve ever read. Seriously. I mean, this is mine and it’s new. The words are completely different than what appear in anyone else’s book. Therefore, it literally is unlike any novel you’ve ever read. That is not hyperbole. It’s the truth.

Also, this review is not to be taken too seriously. I’m mean, I’m reviewing my own book. That would be like grading my own mid-term in college. I would have given myself an ‘A’ and then told my friends and family I rocked the Casbah. By the way, anyone who thinks they would have graded themselves objectively was obviously the dork who wanted to be a hall monitor in junior high school. That guy. Sheesh.

By the way, just as a reminder, The Side Hustle is a crime fiction novel. The tag line is ‘Hard Work Can Be Murder.’ A personal finance blogger was murdered, and the cops must figure out what happened. That’s my moment of serious, grown-up behavior here. Think of it as a mental intermission.

Anyway, if you like podcasts and want to hear a short interview about the book, check out episode #23 of Wrong Place, Write Crime. Its like an earful of crime fiction love. Actually, it’s authors talking about their books, but I like saying an earful of crime fiction love. That just sounds cooler.

I’m almost done, but I want to say, in all seriousness, I truly appreciate you taking the time to read this non-review review. I’m not sure if it will be helpful, but I had fun writing it. I also hope you’ll read The Side Hustle and let me know what you think.

If you’d like to learn more about me, my writings and what’s on the horizon, stop by my website, www.colinconway.com. You can always drop me a line.

[Rich · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the first book that I have read by this author and it was not bad. I thought the story was pretty good. It did however it did get bog down for about 30 pages or so about a third of the way into the book but besides that it flowed at a pretty good pace. I liked the main characters and the secondary characters as well. I did get a little frustrated for awhile about the tension between the two main detectives for a while but that played it's self out in a good way. I liked that he story took place In the Pacific North west where I live. I am not sure if it is going to be a series or not but in any case I say go ahead and give this book a spin.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the characters in this book. A young person that was money savvy and an older cop that was most definitely not. The mystery was well done. The interactions of the characters was entertaining. The education about real estate deals and finances and blogging all added depth to this story. A very enjoyable book and I will definitely read the next in this series.

[Frank Zafiro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full disclosure: I've written a couple of books with Colin, so I am partial to his style and his storytelling.

That said, THE SIDE HUSTLE is a solid procedural with believable characters and a realistic mystery that will keep you guessing in a fair way. The profession of the victim and the amateur sleuth alike is a little different than your usual mystery, and that is fresh. So are the personal problems afflicting one of the lead detectives.

This book is an excellent introduction to Conway's 509 Crime Stories series, which will have an ensemble cast taking turns as the main protagonist. It's also a great intro to a writing style you're almost certainly going to like, if you like your story lean.

[Filip · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book from amazon for free, never heard of the author before so had no expectations. What can I say? I really enjoyed it. The characters were really well-written (with some slightly cringy moments), the mystery was really good with a plenty of plot twists and what can learn a bit about finance while reading it. My main gripe was that the detectives, despite being interesting and me liking their banter a lot, were hilariously incompetent both in professional life, private life as well as it came to combining the two. If not for the victim's friend they wouldn't have achieved anything.

I'll gladly read another volume of this series and then maybe check other books by this author.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Compelling Read

Wasn't sure what to make of this book at first, but the more I read, the more I liked it. Realistic mystery that keeps you guessing, likeable characters with great entertaining interaction. Will definitely be reading others in the series.

[karin whitehead · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Side Hustle

I received this book through another authors promotion in exchange for an honest review. Well defined characters, twists to confuse you, and a great story line. To understand a death, you need to know his story, what brought him to the end. It's not all forensics, it's history. The written version of CSI programs. Enjoyed the story!

[Mickey Noel]

Amazing story! I love it!

This was a great read! A different kind of police procedural. I really enjoyed the characters, who were all strong and crucial to the story. There were some interesting points on financial security that I hadn't expected. Well written and I look forward to seeing more!

[Paulette · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me awhile to get into this book but then characters and plot took off and I quite enjoyed it. I'd read another in the series.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

when a young man is found dead at the bottom of his stairs, Major Crimes Detective Quinn Delaney and his partner Marci Burkett are called in to investigate

[LORRIE · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic

This was a exciting, complicated and thrilling mystery. Each time you get close to the answer, the story changes. It was gewa4

[Lynda Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I downloaded the first two in this series free by a new author to me, thankyou Mr Conway. I did struggle through this a little, however, and it was mainly due to his INCESSANT describing of how red a person's face was !! You may laugh but it happened many, many times, certainly enough to catch my attention and then to drive me to utter distraction !!! I did get a bit bogged down by some of the financials as well, which started to make me glaze over a tad.
I have read he's going to use differing characters in each story which is a shame as I really liked both Quinn and Marci and also 'Kirby Kirby' very much. The second story was the one that initially caught my attention but I always read a series in order and now I've met these characters I'd love to see them again.....I know, no pleasing some people, is there !! I liked the humorous little asides peppered throughout as they appealed to my sense of humour, too.
It has quite a lot of nitpicky errors throughout, though. Missed speechmarks, question marks and fullstops, many misplaced apostrophes (especially when writing detective's and not detectives', which he would then get right all of a sudden so seems to know the difference). He wrote other not other's, and also did that American thing of writing how they speak there by using gotten as opposed to got, an odd error was wom*en suddenly written just as I've typed it there. Jam was used not jamb, flip-flips not flip-flops, peddling not pedalling, blues not blue, exam not examine and effect not affect. There were odd missed words from sentences as well. All things that should be picked up prior to whacking the old publish button.
BUT 'his face warming' and 'his face was beet red' and 'you're blushing now' and 'his face burned red' and 'his face felt warm' and 'his face reddening' and 'her cheeks flushed' and 'Marci's face reddened' and 'Madison's face reddened'......see what I mean ?? Maybe it's just me as it does seem a daft criticism as I read it back here but I can only relate my own experience and what I liked or didn't like.
I'll be reading the second story, though, and hope he has got himself a Thesaurus since he wrote this instalment.

[Barbara Gillan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable read. I've never read anything by this author before, so I was pleased to have found it. Good story-line, good mystery, and there were many twists to keep the reader engaged. The characters were likable - though I could have done with a little less Macho Marci, but I found the Quinn character really engaging. I already have the second in the series on my TBR.

[Todd Ockert · Rating 5 out of 5]

I met Colin at a writers' conference and heard about his 509 series, and I wanted to give it a read. I like police fiction, and Colin nailed it with this book. I could see the characters in my mind and feel what they were doing, as they did it.
This book delves into police drama, drawing on his experience as a police officer and his other business endeavors.
I highly recommend this book if you like Police fiction and drama.

[Thomas Lennek · Rating 5 out of 5]

A mystery with a side gig of personal finance who'd a thought it?

Read a mystery and learn something that'll pay dividends in your personal life. Great plot, intriguing characters, an interesting location. All in all, an enjoyable read. While I was aware that folks with financial issues were security risks in the Defense business, it never occurred to me that it was a risk in law enforcement, too. Free education, here, at multiple levels in an enjoyable venue. I highly recommend this mystery.

[Cecilia Van Der Merwe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad for a free book. Easy reading.

[Leon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quirky and entertaining I'll read some more of this author

[Bonnye Reed]

TheFussyLibrarian

[Donnap · Rating 5 out of 5]

Side Hustle

This was a good clean mystery. It had lots of twists and a good storyline that was totally believable. I recommend this to anyone who likes a good mystery

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had no idea there were so many books with the title Side Hustle, many of which are nonfiction, addressing secondary income streams. It is a great name for this story which centers on the untimely death of a young man with lots of financial irons in the fire. Anxious to solve the homicide are a pair of somewhat dysfunctional detectives as well as a friend of the deceased, a young blogger who soon comes to the realization he really didn’t know his so-called friend at all.
The narrative really zips along — I read it all in one insomniac night — and the story actually makes having a budget and financial goals seem like a good idea. Some of the money talk veered into lecture land and read as if it had been copied and pasted from Dave Ramsey’s website, but when the author stuck to the quirks of the main characters it was a fun read. This book is part of a series taking place in eastern Washington State. I plan to read some of the sequels, wondering if they will include some of the same characters and if they will continue to champion the cause of good financial planning.

[Thom S · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and look forward to getting into the sequels. No spoilers here, just a recommendation to read this story.

As a retired career cop/detective/sergeant I tend to be pretty picky about novels built around law enforcement. This one didn’t disappoint. Colin does a great job of portraying the detectives in the police environment and their interactions with command staff. He has the detectives build their investigation systematically, including following the “rabbit trails” that inevitably pop up. Colin also pays attention to the little procedural details that many authors ignore as unimportant or unnecessary, which I appreciate.

Colin also does a good job of humanizing his characters, particularly the cops, showing them to be regular people with regular problems and goes the additional step of pointing to ways to resolve those problems. (Nicely done Colin!)

All in all, it was definitely worth my time to read and, as stated above, would recommend it. I will be reading more by this author.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good reading and a learning experience

By itself, the murder investigation in this book is a good stand-alone mystery. The massive amount of financial information included puts the book into a different category. Including it in a good story is a way to get the knowledge out without seeming to lecture. What a great twist!

As a murder mystery, the book has many good features. The characters seem like real people with everyday problems. The evil that exists in some people also stands out. Learned manipulation is chillingly described.

I do have two problems. Early on, there are punctuation errors that should have been caught. Additionally, I have a problem with the f-bomb. I know that’s how some people talk, and I suppose it’s meant to make conversation more realistic. Personally, I’ll close a book if the word starts popping up frequently. I’m glad it wasn’t used but a few times, but be warned that it’s there.

All things considered, this book is a gripper.

[Steven Howes · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this to be an enjoyable read. The story is set in the Spokane Valley of eastern Washington (Area Code 509). Although a murder mystery, it deals with intrigue surrounding the world of personal finance and real estate development. Given the dollar amounts involved, there is plenty of motive for a number of individuals to engage in murder.

Trying to make sense of the murder of a well-known personal finance guru is a pair of Spokane Police Department detectives - one a male with personal and financial issues of his own, and the other a brash but well-qualified female trying to make it in a male-dominated department. Complicating matters is the involvement of the victim's close friend in trying to solve the mystery.

[Kathleen Becker · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Side Hustle" was an interesting combination of murder, mystery and crime solving detectives. A young man, Jake Kirby, is found dead lying at the bottom of steps in his apartment building. He runs a blog showing how to live well by being frugal. Was it an accident or was he pushed?
One of his few friends, Kirby Willis is an Uber driver & also owns an apartment building. Kirby starts his own investigation which adds interesting elements.
Great characters and the detectives Quin. & Burkett have interaction and annoyance as true partners do. Had no idea what a side hustle was, so I was intrigued with the title & look forward to reading more of Colin Conways.

[Linda Rowlett · Rating 3 out of 5]

I finished the book in the wee hours of the morning. I’m reading some things with no redeeming social value as I recover from an infection. I had read book 2 of this series, a real departure for me to read a series out of order. But no matter: the policeman who was the protagonist in book 2 isn’t even in book 1. The series is based on a department rather than an individual character.

I found the plot convoluted, but it held my interest.

As I mentioned with the previous Conway novel I reviewed, the writing is rather bland. I even noted a number of inaccuracies. For examples:

“On the wall hung an overly sizeable flat-screen TV.”

“She wore a short black miniskirt …”

[Ginny Goldberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

I must admit that this was a pleasant read. It was nice to read a story set in Spokane and obviously written by someone who knows the area. I spent my childhood in Spokane and could see many of the locations mentioned in the story. Nothing irritates me more than someone writing about the Spokane area who obviously didn't do their research. The characters were real and relatable. Although I did find it irritating towards the end about the writer's fondness for describing someone's emotional state with 'red-face'. There were a lot of red faces in this book. Altogether, I am looking forward to eventually starting the 2nd in the series.

[Roxanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my first book read by this author. I thought the characters were fairly well developed but still some big questions like what's up with Kirby and Marci - didn't see the attraction. The writing was simple and an easy read. The dead guy became less likable as the story went along, but his friend became more likable so that balanced out. There was a lot of extra stuff that made the story a little convoluted. Overall, enjoyed this quick read. Not sure if I'll read others by this author.

[Carôle Ceres · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slow Moving

Fortunately for me, I started this series with ‘The Suit’ and the characters of the 2 detectives had been bedded in. As it is, they both don’t come across very well here and I would have given up quite early into the book. However, by chapter 24, we’re made aware of the reason for Quinn’s annoying habit, although we never get an explanation (or understanding), for Marci!

However, the lot, though a slow burner, was interesting and plausible.

But it took longer to read than it should have.

[Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

For me it is a tossup whether The Side Hustle is four or five stars. I am going with five because it caught and kept my interest throughout the read. Also it had just enough suspects to keep me guessing, but not so many I became confused about who was who. On the four-star side, I felt a few paragraphs were repetitive. Conway writes quite well, but occasionally his spellchecker couldn’t keep up with him.
I recommend this book especially to people who like police procedurals/mysteries. I will definitely keep reading books by Conway.

[Sundarapandian Subramanian · Rating 4 out of 5]

An amazing book to spend time on

The book is amazing and even though I got a little bored at the starting, the storyline started to grasp me and constant changes and the building up of the suspense adds to the glamor of the storyline, even though the ending could have been a little different and more adventurous, I liked how the intention of the murder changed as the story progresses. Overall one of the best books I have read in my lifetime. It's really worth the time you spend in this book. Happy Reading!