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Duckett & Dyer #3
The Mystery Of The Murdered Guy
After their very public triumph over the sinister machinations of the Future Group, Michael Duckett and Stephanie Dyer's accidental detective agency has become a household name. Practically overnight, they've cemented their place as the city's go-to sleuths for solving the weird, oddball cases that would confuse and irritate anyone else.
Join them as they tackle the mysteries of a medically licensed vampire, a mysterious mad bomber, a genderfluid reverse werewolf, and the true meaning of Christmas - just to name a few. Meanwhile, an aging billionaire obsesses over his plans to achieve immortality, which could mean dire consequences for the world. But with Duckett & Dyer: Dicks For Hire on the case, what could go wrong?
If you said 'everything', you'd be correct.
Join them as they tackle the mysteries of a medically licensed vampire, a mysterious mad bomber, a genderfluid reverse werewolf, and the true meaning of Christmas - just to name a few. Meanwhile, an aging billionaire obsesses over his plans to achieve immortality, which could mean dire consequences for the world. But with Duckett & Dyer: Dicks For Hire on the case, what could go wrong?
If you said 'everything', you'd be correct.
Kindle Edition
Published April 1, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
May 1, 2022
G.M. Nair has quickly become an auto-buy author for me. I was a little offended that Bookbub didn't notify me sooner of this release but at least it turned into a nice little birthday gift for myself! I thoroughly enjoyed the Duckett and Dyer shenanigans in Mystery of the Murdered Guy. It would probably be helpful to read both Duckett & Dyer full lengths before diving into the insanity within this short story collection but it isn't a pre-requisite for enjoyment. A little mish mash of science fiction, fantasy, and parody humor, Michael and Stephanie attempt to solve some of the weird cases that are brought to their fledgling PI business. Ever since defeating the Future Group cult, things have been... strange.
I've already read Adrian Pancake and the Santa Slayer, but there were plenty of new short stories to keep me giggling well into the night. Reading a court transcript should probably never be this much fun, but reading Stephanie's poor attempts at self-representation and sassing the judge for not running with the big boys had me snickering.
It still doesn't oust:
“Oshinko, no!” Steph dashed in and knelt at the side of the body pillow. “You’re too barely legal to die!”
The best part of these stories: Michael has become a little more confident, especially when Steph is being reserved in some situations. It made me unreasonably happy to see some growth and their friendship evolving. On first glance, the vignettes don't seem related but it all ties together nicely at the end. Oh, speaking of endings...
Respectfully... WTF IS THAT ENDING?! You can't do these things and expect us readers to NOT be vultures, Nair. There are "needs" and "wants" in this world; I am placing "Stephanie Dyer's background" on my need list.
Ultimately, I almost feel bad for my Mr. and the sheer amount of screen shots I sent him to which he responded "FINE! I'LL READ IT. Stop badgering me!" Hopefully this nonsense review will browbeat some of you lovely readers into giving Duckett & Dyer the good ole collage try too.
I've already read Adrian Pancake and the Santa Slayer, but there were plenty of new short stories to keep me giggling well into the night. Reading a court transcript should probably never be this much fun, but reading Stephanie's poor attempts at self-representation and sassing the judge for not running with the big boys had me snickering.
It still doesn't oust:
“Oshinko, no!” Steph dashed in and knelt at the side of the body pillow. “You’re too barely legal to die!”
The best part of these stories: Michael has become a little more confident, especially when Steph is being reserved in some situations. It made me unreasonably happy to see some growth and their friendship evolving. On first glance, the vignettes don't seem related but it all ties together nicely at the end. Oh, speaking of endings...
Respectfully... WTF IS THAT ENDING?! You can't do these things and expect us readers to NOT be vultures, Nair. There are "needs" and "wants" in this world; I am placing "Stephanie Dyer's background" on my need list.
Ultimately, I almost feel bad for my Mr. and the sheer amount of screen shots I sent him to which he responded "FINE! I'LL READ IT. Stop badgering me!" Hopefully this nonsense review will browbeat some of you lovely readers into giving Duckett & Dyer the good ole collage try too.
April 22, 2022
Just brilliant! The third D&D instalment might seem like a collection of short stories and vignettes, but the experience is much closer to binging a whole season of a TV show. Each standalone episode introduces new plot threads, characters, and mysteries that all culminate in an epic series finale - the eponymous Mystery of the Murdered Guy. Think the Smoking Man stuff in the X-Files, with little bits of information doled out while Mulder and Scully fight that week's stretchy cat person or whatever. And imagine the first two D&D novels are like the TV movies that kicked off the 2004 Battlestar Galactica remake. Something like that.
This fresh new formula allows Nair to experiment with far more crazy high-concept ideas than a traditional novel format could possibly contain. From heists and murder mysteries to straight up monster movie battles - robots, vampires, reverse werewolves, kaijus, dragons, interdimensional elder gods, Santa Claus - nothing is off limits, and it's all a blast.
This really feels like the natural state of D&D. The craziness is cranked up higher than ever, and the sinister background plot ties everything together to create something truly epic. Whether Nair decides to continue with this format next, or goes back to a regular novel for an Avengers-style Phase One Finale, I'll be there for it.
This fresh new formula allows Nair to experiment with far more crazy high-concept ideas than a traditional novel format could possibly contain. From heists and murder mysteries to straight up monster movie battles - robots, vampires, reverse werewolves, kaijus, dragons, interdimensional elder gods, Santa Claus - nothing is off limits, and it's all a blast.
This really feels like the natural state of D&D. The craziness is cranked up higher than ever, and the sinister background plot ties everything together to create something truly epic. Whether Nair decides to continue with this format next, or goes back to a regular novel for an Avengers-style Phase One Finale, I'll be there for it.
May 24, 2022
I really enjoy this snarky sci-fi/mystery series that follows a pair of hapless, accidental detectives. Michael and Stephanie are such a great example of a platonic partnership that is every bit as complex and loving as a romantic one. The humor is always spot on and the multiverse, mind-blowing science behind the science fiction is fertile ground for the author's brilliant imagination. I was a bit torn between giving this outing 4 or 5 stars because it is structured quite differently from what I've grown to expect. Rather than a novel, this one is a series of short stories with some interlocking material between that attempts to tie all the different adventures together. I personally think it might have been more effective as a novel because it ends up feeling a bit choppy and disjointed. But in the end, this series is still so far above much of what I read that I couldn't help bumping up my rating a bit. I think readers who haven't read the previous books in the series will be pretty lost here but as they are so enjoyable, why wouldn't you want to do your homework first? Definitely a fan and I look forward eagerly to the next Duckett and Dyer production.
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February 2, 2022How many of these do I have to write until you people leave me alone?!
This is what I get for trying to express myself creatively.
This is what I get for trying to express myself creatively.
April 25, 2022
I loved the first two Duckett & Dyer books, and I loved the two recently released short stories (The Strange Little Life of Adrian Pancake and St. Nick's For Hire), both of which are included in this collection. That said, I found this to be a mixed bag- while those stories and a few others were enjoyable, some of the others were meh. I did like the connective tissue between all of them, and how it alludes to what's coming next, but as a whole, they didn't do it for me as much as others.
Still an enjoyable read, especially if you like the characters of Mike and Steph- and if you don't, why would you be reading this book anyhow?
Still an enjoyable read, especially if you like the characters of Mike and Steph- and if you don't, why would you be reading this book anyhow?
November 5, 2022
Seriously, read this series if you haven’t already. I can’t stop laughing at Bill Leon Ayer as a cover identity. Fantastic stuff.
August 16, 2022
I've loved the weird shit show this series has been so far, so when the author offered me the third book for review, I jumped at the chance!
This book reads like a series of short stories (as it was originally meant as a mini series of novellas). Normally such a hodge podge would be grating or have pacing issues. But the ludicrous nature of Duckett and Dyer's adventures lends itself really well to random short stories, so the formatting wasn't an issue. And I was impressed with how it all came together in the final titular story.
I loved the short stories that were told from the POV of side characters and what it would be like to only get a glimpse of the weirdness that is the interdimensional world of the series. Made everything feel that much more ludicrous.
As for the greater plot, I liked the growing tension with The Black King. The stories both reveal more about him while increasing the mystery. It makes the problem moving forward still feel as big as it did in book one.
All that being said, the shining moment was the character growth between Stephanie and Michael. Not only are they both growing into their detective agency (I particularly loved how much more into it Michael was in this book) but they're slowly growing closer to each other. The first book hinted that the duo was a force across the multiverse and you start seeing the hints of what they'll become here.
Still waiting Stephanie to get her adorable CSI girlfriend though.
All in all, a fantastic continuation of the series!
This book reads like a series of short stories (as it was originally meant as a mini series of novellas). Normally such a hodge podge would be grating or have pacing issues. But the ludicrous nature of Duckett and Dyer's adventures lends itself really well to random short stories, so the formatting wasn't an issue. And I was impressed with how it all came together in the final titular story.
I loved the short stories that were told from the POV of side characters and what it would be like to only get a glimpse of the weirdness that is the interdimensional world of the series. Made everything feel that much more ludicrous.
As for the greater plot, I liked the growing tension with The Black King. The stories both reveal more about him while increasing the mystery. It makes the problem moving forward still feel as big as it did in book one.
All that being said, the shining moment was the character growth between Stephanie and Michael. Not only are they both growing into their detective agency (I particularly loved how much more into it Michael was in this book) but they're slowly growing closer to each other. The first book hinted that the duo was a force across the multiverse and you start seeing the hints of what they'll become here.
Still waiting Stephanie to get her adorable CSI girlfriend though.
All in all, a fantastic continuation of the series!
October 21, 2022
I really enjoy the Duckett & Dyer books. Michael and Steph are just fun. I think G.M. Nair has gotten better with each book and I move them up on my list as soon as they come out. I'm already looking forward to the next one.
July 28, 2022
GANESH! PLEASE! PUT THE KNIFE DOWN! I PROMISE I’LL READ THE BOOK! OH GOD NO! GIVE ME BACK MY SON!
December 23, 2025
The best series that not enough people are reading. Sci fi, buddy cop, weird, funny, and wonderful. This was my favorite one. I can only hope for more stories in this world.
July 5, 2022
Since the giant interdimensional monster showed up, things had been getting increasingly weird around here.
Here's the quick and dirty version gang: I just loved this whole trilogy, even to the point where I went back and increased my rating for Book 1! I mean, just loved it ALL! Loved the wonderful graphic novel-esque covers! Loved the little hidden funny ha-ha's even in the disclaimer and legal sections! Loved the complexity of the multi-verse, the wild and wacky characters and just the sheer madness of it (waves vaguely), well, all! Shadow Demon. Loved A. Pancake, too, and think he has by now earned the right to be known as THE Pancake (an old A. Whitney Brown joke there... look it up, kids!)! Loved thoroughly and obviously appreciated the good pun(s) that came with that name! That is, as I'm sure you'll agree, a lot of love! Group hug? (yes, Krystle, I'll remember to respect your restraining order, sheesh!)
The fabric of the multi-verse was an intricate wonder with the capacity to drive most sentient beings to madness.
Overall, Book 3 has kind of an anthology feel to it as we follow our favorite dic… PI'S!!! on a quite a number of pretty wild mini-adventures along with keeping up with the whole "saving the Universe" theme chuggin' along. We start with a kind of modern-day take on a plot that Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff would have avoided like the plague. Don't misunderstand me: that bit isn't bad, it's I just don't think either of them would have like to have run as much as what was required here (noting back then actors were required by contract to smoke two packs of cigarettes a day). This then hops into a Kaiju-worthy stop-over in (on? through?) the multi-verse, followed naturally by a cool, Westworld-esque train robbery, reverse were-critters on the moon, angry Greek men and more. With me so far? Good, because I haven't mentioned yet the "Santa Claus Killer" where Steph was right on the money, namely about it would have been far cooler to call him "Santa Slayer". And after that - in true-blue Nair fashion - is when things start to get REALLY weird! Yeah, that's right: poetry is involved!
You think a single mom has time to be a high-tech terrorist? She can barely handle her terrible kids.
Did I mention the inherent evil of Orange Julius? They should have know, dammit. They. Should. Have. KNOWN!!! Because it is (was?) and it is here, too! No, I don't understand that but eventually some of you will. And that's not even discussing the much more believable version of 17th and 18th century France than really should exist in this realm! But all this craziness just works so well, compelling at very least this reader to just read until his eyeballs began to bulge out of his head and scare away the puppy. Or cats as the case may be. Which apparently when gathered as a group are called a "clowder". Go figure, you learn something new every day, though I'll never be able to look at clam chowder the same way again.
It’s a hospital cafeteria. Have you tasted the food here? They think steam is a spice.
I know, I know: you'd actually like to know something about the book. This final installment of the trilogy is riotously funny even if you consider the bits of acute and pretty considerable violence scattered throughout. But the relationship between Michael and Steph continues to shine brighter than a really shiny thing and I just love that their love is the way it is. And naturally, Nair only compliments that with the supporting cast we've known from before (more or less in many cases) and the new players that appear, including those of the two- and four-legged varieties. And let's be honest: if you don't just go SQUEEEE reading about a moon base run by rogue grad students, then well, there's just no pleasing some folks. All-in-all I thought it took a lot of guts by the author to construct this story like he did and still have it fit seamlessly into everything that has come before.
He was sick of blindly leaping from universe to universe, never sure where he would end up, and hoping each time that his next leap would be the leap home.
reviewer's note: that sounds oddly familiar, no? Hm…
Have I mentioned that a lot of this review hasn't even covered more than the last third of the book yet? I mean, I do keep notes as I'm reading along but everything just kept coming at me like a really wild thing running, well, at me! And yeah, the whole "Dicks for Hire: An Anthology" (yeah, I'm giggling, too) continues through a lot of iterations of weirdness that I'm not ignoring here but geez, you guys need to do some of your own research, too, you know? But wowzers, you ain't seen nothin' yet!
“Steph, how many times have I told you to stop antagonizing monsters!” Mike screamed.
As for the aforementioned final mad dash to the end - and whoa nelly, it just goes off the rails and then some - how the hell Nair managed to pull all that together into the neat little package that we wind up with was just mind-boggling and then some. Seriously, if you tried to chart out the latter part of this book in terms of twists, turns, closing up just about every loose end you could think of and then setting things up to go all the way to the end of eternity… man, tip 'o the cap is all I can think of to say! I was just thinking on almost each page 'there's no way we'll get to that' and then boom-shaka-laka... um, that means we do. Or did. Your call.
And best of all (looks secretly left, then right, then back again)… we find out there's another book coming one day! SQUEEEE the Return of SQUEEEE! Great stuff gang, enjoy!
Here's the quick and dirty version gang: I just loved this whole trilogy, even to the point where I went back and increased my rating for Book 1! I mean, just loved it ALL! Loved the wonderful graphic novel-esque covers! Loved the little hidden funny ha-ha's even in the disclaimer and legal sections! Loved the complexity of the multi-verse, the wild and wacky characters and just the sheer madness of it (waves vaguely), well, all! Shadow Demon. Loved A. Pancake, too, and think he has by now earned the right to be known as THE Pancake (an old A. Whitney Brown joke there... look it up, kids!)! Loved thoroughly and obviously appreciated the good pun(s) that came with that name! That is, as I'm sure you'll agree, a lot of love! Group hug? (yes, Krystle, I'll remember to respect your restraining order, sheesh!)
The fabric of the multi-verse was an intricate wonder with the capacity to drive most sentient beings to madness.
Overall, Book 3 has kind of an anthology feel to it as we follow our favorite dic… PI'S!!! on a quite a number of pretty wild mini-adventures along with keeping up with the whole "saving the Universe" theme chuggin' along. We start with a kind of modern-day take on a plot that Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff would have avoided like the plague. Don't misunderstand me: that bit isn't bad, it's I just don't think either of them would have like to have run as much as what was required here (noting back then actors were required by contract to smoke two packs of cigarettes a day). This then hops into a Kaiju-worthy stop-over in (on? through?) the multi-verse, followed naturally by a cool, Westworld-esque train robbery, reverse were-critters on the moon, angry Greek men and more. With me so far? Good, because I haven't mentioned yet the "Santa Claus Killer" where Steph was right on the money, namely about it would have been far cooler to call him "Santa Slayer". And after that - in true-blue Nair fashion - is when things start to get REALLY weird! Yeah, that's right: poetry is involved!
You think a single mom has time to be a high-tech terrorist? She can barely handle her terrible kids.
Did I mention the inherent evil of Orange Julius? They should have know, dammit. They. Should. Have. KNOWN!!! Because it is (was?) and it is here, too! No, I don't understand that but eventually some of you will. And that's not even discussing the much more believable version of 17th and 18th century France than really should exist in this realm! But all this craziness just works so well, compelling at very least this reader to just read until his eyeballs began to bulge out of his head and scare away the puppy. Or cats as the case may be. Which apparently when gathered as a group are called a "clowder". Go figure, you learn something new every day, though I'll never be able to look at clam chowder the same way again.
It’s a hospital cafeteria. Have you tasted the food here? They think steam is a spice.
I know, I know: you'd actually like to know something about the book. This final installment of the trilogy is riotously funny even if you consider the bits of acute and pretty considerable violence scattered throughout. But the relationship between Michael and Steph continues to shine brighter than a really shiny thing and I just love that their love is the way it is. And naturally, Nair only compliments that with the supporting cast we've known from before (more or less in many cases) and the new players that appear, including those of the two- and four-legged varieties. And let's be honest: if you don't just go SQUEEEE reading about a moon base run by rogue grad students, then well, there's just no pleasing some folks. All-in-all I thought it took a lot of guts by the author to construct this story like he did and still have it fit seamlessly into everything that has come before.
He was sick of blindly leaping from universe to universe, never sure where he would end up, and hoping each time that his next leap would be the leap home.
reviewer's note: that sounds oddly familiar, no? Hm…
Have I mentioned that a lot of this review hasn't even covered more than the last third of the book yet? I mean, I do keep notes as I'm reading along but everything just kept coming at me like a really wild thing running, well, at me! And yeah, the whole "Dicks for Hire: An Anthology" (yeah, I'm giggling, too) continues through a lot of iterations of weirdness that I'm not ignoring here but geez, you guys need to do some of your own research, too, you know? But wowzers, you ain't seen nothin' yet!
“Steph, how many times have I told you to stop antagonizing monsters!” Mike screamed.
As for the aforementioned final mad dash to the end - and whoa nelly, it just goes off the rails and then some - how the hell Nair managed to pull all that together into the neat little package that we wind up with was just mind-boggling and then some. Seriously, if you tried to chart out the latter part of this book in terms of twists, turns, closing up just about every loose end you could think of and then setting things up to go all the way to the end of eternity… man, tip 'o the cap is all I can think of to say! I was just thinking on almost each page 'there's no way we'll get to that' and then boom-shaka-laka... um, that means we do. Or did. Your call.
And best of all (looks secretly left, then right, then back again)… we find out there's another book coming one day! SQUEEEE the Return of SQUEEEE! Great stuff gang, enjoy!
August 12, 2023
The third installment is as crazy as the others! It did amuse me greatly as did the other two, but this one had such long chapters that it wasn't keeping me as engaged as the other two.
Some of it towards the end got a bit confusing as it seemed to jump from one part of the story to another without warning, but all that aside I did enjoy the book almost as much as the other two
Some of it towards the end got a bit confusing as it seemed to jump from one part of the story to another without warning, but all that aside I did enjoy the book almost as much as the other two
September 2, 2023
Impossibly inventive and funny story
GM Nair must have an amazing imagination to craft such a brilliant story where so many bizarre ingredients combine to make a funny and clever story. They get sillier as they develop, with characters reappearing from previous books! And, without fail, I found myself giggling all the time! Highly recommended!
GM Nair must have an amazing imagination to craft such a brilliant story where so many bizarre ingredients combine to make a funny and clever story. They get sillier as they develop, with characters reappearing from previous books! And, without fail, I found myself giggling all the time! Highly recommended!
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews