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Mad Dog & Englishman #5
Server Down
Attending the Yaqui tribe's Easter Ceremonies in Tucson should be a dream come true for a Cheyenne wannabe shaman like Mad Dog. But, immediately after his midnight arrival, he is accused of being a witch and blamed for a police officer's murder. Mad Dog's niece, Heather English, a part-time deputy for her father in Kansas, combs Tucson to clear her uncle. Meanwhile, someone has blown up Mad Dog's house. Sheriff English investigates, acting as a long-distance go-between for Arizona law enforcement and his daughter and brother. Mad Dog has been playing a massive online computer game, War of Worldcraft. There, a vampire wizard has made a habit of tormenting him. He recognized the monster as the cop killer at the Yaqui ceremonies. Somehow, he says, the creature has reached out of the game to come after him in the real world. The ghost in the machine promises death for Mad Dog and explicit and horrible tortures for Heatherhalf a country away, and all before dawn.
- GenresMystery
304 pages, Paperback
First published May 5, 2008
29 people want to read
About the author
J.M. Hayes
12 books13 followersJ.M. "Mike" Hayes has been an anthropologist, an archaeologist, and has supervised youth camping, sports, an recreation programs. He was born and raised on the flat earth of central Kansas his Mad Dog & Englishman mysteries take place. He graduated from Wichita State University and did post graduate work at the University of Arizona. He makes his home in Tucson (site of his first novel, The Grey Pilgrim) with his wife, several computers, 4000 or so books, and a small herd of German Shepherds.
Series:
* Mad Dog and Englishman Mystery
Series:
* Mad Dog and Englishman Mystery
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
June 2, 2009
From midnight till dawn, this exciting, suspenseful thriller provides nonstop action, and the reader may find it impossible to sleep until the end is reached. It's hard to summarize any of Hayes' excellent books, but here goes: Mad Dog, part-Cherokee and sure he's a shaman, looks to the uninitiated like another burly, bald white guy. No sooner has he arrived at a Native American ceremony in Tucson than he's been framed for murder, and is on the run from the cops, with the aid of his spirit helper in the form of a domesticated wolf. Meanwhile, back in Kansas, his home is burned to the ground and his half-brother, sheriff John English, is threatened as well. English's daughter Heather, also in Tucson, is desperately looking for her uncle, and trying to dodge a sadistic professional killer--but he's ready to switch sides and help Heather, after being double-crossed by his employers. And that's only the start!
Don't miss this one. Actually, you should start with the first of this series and read through in order, to get the full impact of all the books.
Don't miss this one. Actually, you should start with the first of this series and read through in order, to get the full impact of all the books.
October 10, 2021
As a Tucsonan, it was an interesting read.
March 10, 2011
Poisoned Pen Press is probably the elite crime fiction publisher in the nation right now. Their standards are very high and under Barbara Peters’ gimlet eye and firm editorial hand, they rarely stumble. Having Bob always around to beat the drums doesn’t hurt, either. In fact, their growing power in the crime fiction community allows them to support authors who are interested in stretching their personal visions as authors.
SERVER DOWN, is a good example. J.M Hayes is engaged in writing a series set in the flatlands small mid-Kansas, largely rural, community in Benteen County. The series, this one is the fifth episode, is a gentle tongue-in-cheek riff on an old and rude English public house song with the refrain, “Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the noon day sun.” Principal fellow is a part Indian Kansan who yearns to be a Cheyenne shaman. His adopted moniker is Mad Dog. His brother, the Sheriff of Benteen County is named English. It’s a family name. So naturally, people here and there refer to the Sheriff as Englishman. Mad Dog is a militant pacifist who is forever getting involved in causes, peaceful protests. That of course sets him against movers and shakers who’d like to develop the hell out of Benteen County.
Among his other interests, Mad Dog is a gamer. He apparently satisfies his bloodlust with a computer game called War of Worldcraft. Unfortunately, it turns out the massive violent game has more to it than mere pixels on a screen.
Mad Dog is in Tucson to witness classic Indian Easter ceremonies when life goes off the rails. His home back in Kansas is blown away and he’s now accused of murdering a local officer. Things spiral out of control until his entire family is at risk and the bodies begin to fall with such rapidity that it becomes difficult to keep track. It’s where the author has begun to take risks. Will his audience, used to the slightly off-kilter amusing antics of the Benteen characters, moving in generally placid currents, accept the grittier, more violent and hard-edged tone of this novel? I hope so, because this is a dandy novel. Of course the press is taking a risk as well. Author Hayes is an excellent writer and if the novel gives short shrift to the compute game that is part of the fundamental functionality of the plot, the characters and their trials are far more interesting anyway.
An eminently satisfying story, the characters perform viciously or admirably as are their roles and of course there’s Hailey. Everybody’s favorite wolf. Excuse me? You haven’t met this creature? Too bad. You’re missing one of the most interesting, effective, and silent law enforcement figures to come down the pike. Tall dark and handsome, Hailey is something else and he’s mostly silent in the bargain.
SERVER DOWN, is a good example. J.M Hayes is engaged in writing a series set in the flatlands small mid-Kansas, largely rural, community in Benteen County. The series, this one is the fifth episode, is a gentle tongue-in-cheek riff on an old and rude English public house song with the refrain, “Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the noon day sun.” Principal fellow is a part Indian Kansan who yearns to be a Cheyenne shaman. His adopted moniker is Mad Dog. His brother, the Sheriff of Benteen County is named English. It’s a family name. So naturally, people here and there refer to the Sheriff as Englishman. Mad Dog is a militant pacifist who is forever getting involved in causes, peaceful protests. That of course sets him against movers and shakers who’d like to develop the hell out of Benteen County.
Among his other interests, Mad Dog is a gamer. He apparently satisfies his bloodlust with a computer game called War of Worldcraft. Unfortunately, it turns out the massive violent game has more to it than mere pixels on a screen.
Mad Dog is in Tucson to witness classic Indian Easter ceremonies when life goes off the rails. His home back in Kansas is blown away and he’s now accused of murdering a local officer. Things spiral out of control until his entire family is at risk and the bodies begin to fall with such rapidity that it becomes difficult to keep track. It’s where the author has begun to take risks. Will his audience, used to the slightly off-kilter amusing antics of the Benteen characters, moving in generally placid currents, accept the grittier, more violent and hard-edged tone of this novel? I hope so, because this is a dandy novel. Of course the press is taking a risk as well. Author Hayes is an excellent writer and if the novel gives short shrift to the compute game that is part of the fundamental functionality of the plot, the characters and their trials are far more interesting anyway.
An eminently satisfying story, the characters perform viciously or admirably as are their roles and of course there’s Hailey. Everybody’s favorite wolf. Excuse me? You haven’t met this creature? Too bad. You’re missing one of the most interesting, effective, and silent law enforcement figures to come down the pike. Tall dark and handsome, Hailey is something else and he’s mostly silent in the bargain.
December 25, 2010
#5 (and so far, the last) Mad Dog & Englishman mystery. Usually the series is set in fictional small-town Kansas, but in this book, part of the story takes place in Tuscon, AZ where Englishman's daughter Heather is attending law school, and where her uncle Mad Dog has driven off to in order to observe a sacred Native American rite. Unfortunately, MD doesn't get to see much of the rite as he is almost immediately attacked and accused of murdering a tribal officer and ends up on the run with his half-wolf Hailey.
Meanwhile, back in Kansas, Mad Dog's house is blown to smithereens. He subsequently learns that a character from the online video game he plays called War of Worldcraft--an evil Vampire Wizard named Fig Zit--is the one behind his frame-up and destruction of his home. Mad Dog has no idea how Fig Zit found out who he was in real life or why he would want to cause him harm, but he's certain that's what's happening. Everyone else, of course, thinks he's nuts--not that they hadn't already suspected as much before.
It takes the adept play of Mrs. Krause (Sheriff English's office manager), a fairly good WoW player herself, to make the connection. Meanwhile, it's a madcap chase across Tuscon and the Internet with Mad Dog and Heather running into one scrape after another along the way.
I really enjoyed this entry in the series, since I myself play World of Warcraft, the game that the author based his spoofy game on. It's obvious he also played the game because so much of his characterization and game play was spot on--and very funny, too. This book was published in 2008, so not sure if there are going to be any more books in the series or not--I do hope so! It would be interesting to continue it on with Heather in the lead role, I think, since Sheriff English played a somewhat diminished role in this book anyway. Wacky, goofy, crazy, much under-recognized and utterly delightful series.
Meanwhile, back in Kansas, Mad Dog's house is blown to smithereens. He subsequently learns that a character from the online video game he plays called War of Worldcraft--an evil Vampire Wizard named Fig Zit--is the one behind his frame-up and destruction of his home. Mad Dog has no idea how Fig Zit found out who he was in real life or why he would want to cause him harm, but he's certain that's what's happening. Everyone else, of course, thinks he's nuts--not that they hadn't already suspected as much before.
It takes the adept play of Mrs. Krause (Sheriff English's office manager), a fairly good WoW player herself, to make the connection. Meanwhile, it's a madcap chase across Tuscon and the Internet with Mad Dog and Heather running into one scrape after another along the way.
I really enjoyed this entry in the series, since I myself play World of Warcraft, the game that the author based his spoofy game on. It's obvious he also played the game because so much of his characterization and game play was spot on--and very funny, too. This book was published in 2008, so not sure if there are going to be any more books in the series or not--I do hope so! It would be interesting to continue it on with Heather in the lead role, I think, since Sheriff English played a somewhat diminished role in this book anyway. Wacky, goofy, crazy, much under-recognized and utterly delightful series.
November 1, 2010
A timely read with election day coming up-you'll see what I mean towards the end. Short and entertaining although whimsical and violent. Sounded like a South Park episode but with far too many coincidences. Looks like Hayes might be taking the Wallander route with Sheriff English as the daughter appears ready to carry on the family tradition. I had just had to keep turning the pages to see what mayhem ensued. This one is different in that it takes place simultaneously in Kansas and Tucson, Arizona and revolves around reality and video games merging and becoming undistinguishable to some of the characters. Gotta love the wolf that is smarter than some of the cops and perps. Looking forward to the next Mad Dog and Englishman mystery.
March 2, 2012
I had put this book down to reread the satisfying ending of Craig Johnson's Dark Horse. When I picked it up again I was surprised at how quickly I was drawn back into the story. Server Down Moves at a much faster pace than his earlier books. All the familiar characters are there Mad Dog, his wolf/ dog hybrid, and his niece Heather(number one of two)move this story. Is it real or is it virtual. when real people die you have to ask why. Mad Dog,Cheyenne shaman,Rigged elections,computer hackers, greed all make this a great book
November 24, 2015
[library audiobook, plot summary elsewhere]
I liked the featuring of native american culture and the Kansas senior woman joining an internet multiplayer fantasy game. But the fantasy elements of the plot against a realistic background of the action made the novel tedious. Still, I listened to the end.
I liked the featuring of native american culture and the Kansas senior woman joining an internet multiplayer fantasy game. But the fantasy elements of the plot against a realistic background of the action made the novel tedious. Still, I listened to the end.
April 24, 2016
This was a strange and unusual book; there were parts I liked and parts that made me shrug. There were interesting characters, but the situation seemed very unlikely to me. The combination of high tech issues and Native American spirituality with a professional serial killer just didn't feel real... too much magic for me.
October 16, 2013
Fun read, especially if you like dogs/wolfs and how smart they can be. Always a good comment of what is happening in the current world. Love the characters the funny parts in the book and the possibilities of what might be.
October 3, 2016
This book is not very good
This book is not up to the usual mad dog standards. It was actually hard to finish. I am a computer scientist and that part was extremely hokey. Don't waste your money on this one.
This book is not up to the usual mad dog standards. It was actually hard to finish. I am a computer scientist and that part was extremely hokey. Don't waste your money on this one.
July 15, 2009
The mystery part pretty good, but I did not care for all of the gaming references. I don't have an avatar, and probably never will. Lots of violence described graphically.
August 14, 2009
A good quick mystery, but too many characters and a lot of the action is unbelievable.
June 9, 2010
The usual good mystery within the goofiness of the series!
August 26, 2011
Not as good as the first one but I still liked it.
November 6, 2011
We enjoyed listening to this book on the cd.
April 12, 2015
This is my first book book by J. M. Hayes, and I really enjoyed it.There were so many twists and turns and unique characters I plan in reading more in the series
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews