Desolate Angel

Dead Detective #1

by Chaz McGee

He was once a second-rate cop, a mediocre husband, and an absent father. But ever since he was killed in a drug bust gone bad, Kevin fahey's been a lost soul in limbo, searching for a way out of his solitude and hoping for redemption. Now he'll have to prove to be a better ghost than he ever was as a man....

After I died, I wandered my town, unseen, alone, and wondering why I'd been sentenced to linger in this world. Then Alissa, the victim in a long-ago murder case I'd worked, came to me. She led me to a body sprawled in the weeds, and the terrible truth dawned on me: I'd let Alissa's real killer escape. I'd imprisoned an innocent man - and now another young girl was dead.

I know my redemption lies in righting this wrong. And the only way I can do that is to somehow forge a connection with my replacement on the force, Maggie Gunn. Now I'm haunted by the fear that dragging Maggie into this may turn out to be the biggest mistake of my afterlife....

Genres: Mystery, Paranormal, Fiction, Fantasy, Ebooks, Ghosts, Cozy Mystery

298 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published May 20, 2009

About the author

A pseudonym for Katy Munger.

Reviews

[B.C. Deeks · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are looking for a traditional cozy mystery, this isn't it. But it is a great read. The premise caught my attention at first- I love the combination of mystery and paranormal-but the reviews seemed split. I decided to make my own decision. I'm so glad I did.
The main character is a loser detective who wakes up to discover he's dead. Despite being a poor excuse for a husband, father and cop, he wasn't sent right to hell, and he definitely didn't get a ticket to the Pearly Gates. He's trapped in no man's land condemned to watch his life go on without him, alone, as a ghost. This would make anyone start reassessing how they lived and what they'd lost. I suspect this is what is throwing some readers off this book; the author uses very deep point of view in first person and I really felt he nailed it. This is a story about a dead cop being given a sort-of chance to right the screw ups of his career. When a ghost from his past finally shows up, he grabs onto the hope he has a shot at redemption, or at least escape from the monotony of his new existence. And that's where the intriguing mystery comes in. By the end, he fixes one of his past mistakes, and finds out how his own death occurred.
No promises but you get the feeling he might yet earn that ticket to Heaven ... eventually. This was the first book in the Dead Detective series. I'm dying to read the next one.

[Sheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

The life-after-death aspect seems to exist entirely to give the author an excuse to go off on philosophical tangents; the mystery plot doesn't really need the narrator to be dead, IMHO. Or to be there, for that matter. Also one of those rare books where the author has a male name but I was pretty sure she was female, which she is. Didn't bother me, in that the aspect that felt most "female" could be explained away by how she's set up the narrator's afterlife, but not something I'm usually aware of. Just didn't think a guy would notice female camaraderie as this character does, or if he did, he'd explain it differently.

Didn't finish the book convinced I need to run right out and buy the sequels, but if they drop in my lap the way this one did, I'll read them.

[Alexia Gordon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Full of (yes, full of, from the first chapter to the last) passages like "As I stood next to Sarah Hayes, willing myself to be an instrument of good, I believe that the first faint stirrings of my own salvation came into being. I felt connected to the child by a channel of pure white light, by a chord of love so strong I cannot explain it except to say that it did not come from me, it only came through me and in serving as its vessel I had bound us together forever." The protagonist is so busy spouting mystical or spiritual or metaphysical or whatever he forgets to have a personality. What kind of guy has zero reaction to his wife of twenty-two years involved in a serious relationship with another man only six months after his violent death? The protagonist/ghost doesn't actually interact with anyone, except a dog, just spends nearly 300 pages skulking around observing/reporting on the novel's action and making pseudo-profound statements. A first person POV book that feels more remote than third person omniscient. Add in some unrealistic details like a guy who spent three years in prison on a bogus conviction being released from prison cleared of all charges within a week of a detective finding a clue that suggests he may be innocent (bet the Innocence Project wishes they could get results that fast) and the murderer being revealed about halfway through the book (which is about 50 pages after the reader's figured out who did it--there's only one suspect) and you're left with a book that's neither good ghost story nor good mystery.

[Melodie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. Quite different. Kevin Fahey is a ghost. He was a lousy cop and an even lousier husband & father. Being dead has given him a different outlook. He has begun to see just what he missed out in his life by being a 3rd class person and is looking to try & redeem himself. If not in the eyes of the people who loved him once, to himself. He gets a second chance to try & make right a closed case in which the wrong man went to prison for a murder he didn't commit due to Kevin & his partner Danny's half-ass work. This was just a good book. Everyone deserves redemption if they can get it. Made me stop & think about all the things we take for granted everyday and what it might be like to see it from Kevin's side and know you don't get a do-over.

[Tony Hisgett · Rating 1 out of 5]

The idea of a ghost detective was OK but the reality wasn’t as good. The dead detective, Kevin, was a bit of a failure and has carried his angst and self-pity into the afterlife, where he appears to be equally ineffective. This is quite depressing to read, then Maggie turns up.
She is a highly professional detective and Kevin looks to her to make up for some of his mistakes. Unfortunately, most of the story is written from Kevin’s point of view, he even carries out a running commentary on what Maggie is doing.

I got to just over halfway, then I just skip read until the end, but I still have absolutely no idea why the author bothered with the Ghost, he contributed virtually nothing to the investigation, I would have much preferred to just follow Maggie.

[Jeannie and Louis Rigod · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was one heck of a read. Nothing cozy about it although you would think it was from the cover blurb and picture.

This book is for a person who likes psychological thrillers/murders. This book is for a person that enjoys deep thinking and emotions. This book should be read by persons of faith and those that applaud justice.

This book was superb. To say more would be a mistake as each reader will receive a powerful message from it.

[Ken Finlay · Rating 3 out of 5]

In life Kevin Fahey was a lousy cop, a crap father, but a dedicated drunk and adulterer.
As a ghost he's got plenty of sober time to melancholically reflect on a wasted life.
At least he put away the murderer of Alissa Hayes - oh, hang on, he jailed the wrong person- and now Alissa's silent ghost is haunting him.
There's been another murder, identical to that Alissa, but the problem is that the 'murderer' is in jail ... as a result of Kevin and his partner Danny's botched investigation.
Now, detective Maggie Gunn is investigating the murder and making the connections that will link it to the past.
Kevin is looking over her shoulder all the way.
"Desolate Angel" is an odd book in several ways, Kevin is mostly an onlooker unable to alter the course of events - it makes you wonder why he is there in the first place. And sometimes the plotting is a bit obvious, for example when someone borrows Maggie's car you know what's coming, and it promptly does.
Kevin is not entirely believable - he sees in Maggie everything he could have been as a cop and a person - she is without a flaw - and is never really fleshed out, he just does not feel complete (maybe that's the point?)
"Desolate Angel" is a very different kind of book that didn't completely work for me but it did keep me reading right to the end.
3 Stars

[Deborah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was better than I expected. I thought it might be a light read, perhaps a little comical. Instead it explored the meaning of life and love and what it means to be human and connected to others. The author explored the nature of evil and its lust to destroy innocence and savor fear without being salacious. He had me dreading the next page at the same moment I was eager to read on, wondering if the monster would claim another victim before he was caught. I felt such sympathy for the lost soul trying to make atonement for his mistakes that had caused harm and realizing time and again what a fool he had been to not appreciate the gift of life when he had it. The plot moved along well and the characters had depth. As the book neared the end I found I was hoping that our hero would stick around for a while, even while I pitied him for being trapped in his undead state.

[Claudia Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellently written and emotionally moving book

I am not particularly fond of books about police and detectives and murder. This book, however, kept my interest riveted from first to last. In spite of the handicap of being dead and thus invisible and inaudible to the living, the protagonist struggles to redeem his life from the incompetence and alcoholism that blemished his last living days. I intend to read the other books in the series, and I highly recommend this one.

[Valerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kevin Fahey is a dead detective who fell from grace during his life. He hasn't moved on and regains
an understanding of what and why his life took the turns it did before his death. He follows his old partner who has fallen into alcoholic lifestyle and is trying to impede an investigation being led by an up and coming woman who reminds Fahey of himself before he started drinking and got sloppy in his investigations.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

An alcoholic detective is shot in the line of duty and becomes a ghost. He is approached by the ghost of a girl from one of his former cases and he realizes that he must help the new detective catch a killer to make amends for the sloppy work he did in his previous life.
An entertaining read and seems to be the start of a new series.

[Anne Patkau · Rating 1 out of 5]

Theme disappoints. Voice, vocab inconsistent with drunk cop gets epiphanies of light, unity. As ghost, Kevin whines how life wasted, witters esoteric with anagogic. Typos 1.7 ere metic 6.1 delete Something ... again ; He already smells 7.2 em barassingly 8.3 de terminedly ; ga toring 12.4 murmur ings ; unut tered ; etc

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

It felt blah to me, I know that this is the first one in the series but I ( on accident) read the third one first and found it to be a much better story. I was hoping that when I read this one I found find out more about the lead character and his circumstances that surrounded his death.

[Iona · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting story. The usual crime story with a twist, it is told by a dead detective who is trying to put right a crime he bungled when he was alive. Another murder happens after he and his partner convict a guy. The case is reopened and the story unfolds...

[Peggy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written, interesting concept and I will read more in this series.

[Peggy Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely wonderful story of a troubled cop who becomes an usually guardian angel. Love it cannot wait to begin book 2.

[Margaret]

Better than I thought it might be but not good enough to make me want to go out of my way to read more in the series. A little more original in premise than some.

[Patti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book! The plot sounds a bit cheesy, but it really wasn't

[Paschalis]

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[Susan Moxley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. I espically enjoyed how although the detictive was already dead but yethe was willing to do anything to help solve the murder.

[Josh Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went in worried that this was one of those books with a great premise executed poorly. Thankfully, it was a pleasant read.

[Kimberly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best mysteries I've read in quite awhile. Hard to describe but very good. Can't wait to start the second in the series.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really a 3.5. I enjoyed the story, I just thought the ghost detective “loving” the living detective was weird. Worth reading!

[Cathy Cole · Rating 4 out of 5]

First Line: A man lies dying on the grime-encrusted floor of an abandoned house on the banks of the Delaware.

The man who lies dying on the dirty floor is Kevin Fahey, a second-rate cop, a mediocre husband and father, and the narrator of this book. As Fahey himself now says:

"I am a ghost haunted by my regrets, doomed to walk through a world that is neither here nor there, tasting my fate in my solitude, seeking a redemption I fear will never come."


When it is proved that a young man Fahey and his partner sent to prison for the death of his girlfriend is in fact innocent, this dead detective knows that his best shot at redemption lies with Detective Maggie Gunn, a gifted, empathetic investigator who's taken on the task of not only finding the real killer, but of going through all Fahey and Partner's old cases to see if there's anything else in the files that needs to be straightened out. Although ashamed of how he threw away his life, Fahey is determined to be of as much help to Gunn as he can. Complicating matters is that Fahey's partner, Danny Bonaventura, has yet to retire and isn't taking this examination of the old files very well.

For those who aren't big fans of paranormal mysteries, you'll be happy to note that Kevin Fahey does not become Super Cop on The Other Side. There's very little he can do in this first book to influence the living except by planting the occasional thought in someone's mind. It will be interesting to see if he acquires new skills the longer he remains a ghost.

Maggie Gunn is the type of police officer we wish they all were-- compassionate with the families of victims, respectful (but not obsequious) with her superior officers, Maggie seems able to channel the Energizer Bunny and the most tenacious bulldog as she searches for a truly scary serial killer. In Desolate Angel, the killer's identity is no secret; it's how they're going to find the evidence they need to put him in jail that fuels the action. Knowing the killer in this case ratchets up the suspense by several degrees, and Fahey's despair at being unable to help is palpable.

I ordered this book primarily because I liked the different approach. This time the main character is a failure, a screw-up who gets a second chance to correct his past mistakes, and the author (Katy Munger writing as Chaz McGee) uses that to excellent effect. Aren't there times when every single one of us has wished for a second chance? Kevin Fahey has the best real, live partner to help him with his quest. I really look forward to its continuation.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were many things I liked about this book, but, somehow, in the end, it just didn't overwhelm me or even inspire me to really want to read any more installments in what I guess is supposed to be a series. Maybe I will, but with so many good reads out there, more of these might not make it onto my list. The main characters are fairly well developed over the course of the book and I liked Kevin Fahey and Maggie Gunn. Fahey's 'awakening' after death was well done and his desire to redeem himself drives a lot of the story. I liked that he didn't really have any attachment to the more earthly feelings anymore - they were there, but didn't control him - and his being able to discern feelings and 'essences' and others' thoughts somewhat - to see the real person. There is a feeling of disgust and pity for Danny. And, of course, an abhorrence for the killer, who is pretty one dimensional, but that seems fair for a cold blooded serial killer. The story developed okay. You know fairly early who the killer is. The fact that Fahey is dead and mostly impotent adds to the suspense as he figures things out and wants to protect the innocent. There was one bit of development that was not finished, that I can remember: Danny removes something from Maggie's desk. Did I miss finding out what that was? Did it play into the story anywhere else? It seemed like a big deal at the time and then I don't remember anything coming of it.
I still don't know who the Desolate Angel of the title is: Fahey refers repeatedly to Maggie as his angel, but that doesn't seem right; the appearance to Fahey of the dead girl that sparks the whole story line could mean it refers to her; in the end, it is probably Fahey himself who is the desolate angel, but I don't know.
McGee's writing is easy and flows well. He captures senses pretty well. My favorite bit is actually on the page before the Prologue:
"They say some men die and go to Heaven,
While others are doomed to Hell.
But for me, death was an awful lot like life:
I went absolutely nowhere."
If you want a detective murder mystery with a twist, this might be a good choice.

[Gofita · Rating 3 out of 5]

One Line Summary: A dead detective helps his replacement solve crimes.

Detective Fahey wakes up to find himself dead one day and walking among the living as a ghost. He was an alcoholic in life and therefore was a bad detective, father, and husband. But when the ghost of one of his "solved" cases comes to him for help he knows he must find the real killer to make amends and sets out to help his new replacement Maggie.

This was a really fun read. I always enjoy a good crime fiction/mystery and this one didn't disappoint. It was different since the detective was already dead and he had a limited way to interact with the physical world. Chaz McGee uses this to his advantage and lets his character Fahey delve into thoughts on life and the great beyond quite poignantly. Though, it did get a bit tedious at times, more like he was preaching rather than forwarding the story.

But we start to care about Maggie and Fahey's ex-partner because Fahey does. I don't know how much the dead detective really helped! But it was fun seeing him try.

It's not my favorite crime series ever, but I wouldn't mind reading a few more in the series when they're written.

If Good reads had half stars I'd give this a 3.5!

[Charlotte · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a mystery with an interesting twist...the main character, a former police officer, is dead, and is wandering his home town as a ghost when the victim of a murder he "solved" appears to him and leads him to another dead body. It is obvious to the detective that the man they put behind bars for the crime is actually innocent, and the true killer is still roaming free, so he sets out to try and correct his mistake.

It seemed to me that the only purpose in having the main character be a ghost was for an interesting narrative point of view. Because really, the dead detective didn't do a whole lot to affect the outcome of the story. There were a couple of things he did to help, but not much, and it seemed to me that the other characters would have arrived at the same ending eventually, anyway. The story was pretty predictable; I had fairly accurately guessed at the ending by midway through the book. However, there were some interesting observations made about death and human nature, and it was written well enough to keep me going through the end.

I've been waffling between 2 & 3 stars, would give it 2 1/2.
Now, I get to go to the library and see what kind of a free book I get!

[Lybo Buchanan · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a surprisingly good book, & a novell idea having a dead detective. Kevin Fahey had been a lousy detective in life, wasting the time he was given in doing a sloppy job in solving crimes & spending most of his time drunk. Now that he is dead (& sober) he sees everything from a new perspective. He hates the person he was & so tries to make up for all the wrongs he did & his failure as a person. His old partner's new partner is Detective Maggy Gunn, who is very bright & very much focused on doing right by the victims. She is passionate, caring, smart, & driven. She is everything in life that he never was.

Kevin starts pretending he's her partner & helps her in anyway he can. Of course, being dead has its advantages in that he could walk anywhere he wants, & practically be unnoticed. He could also look through peoples memories. But it has its drawbacks as well, that any information he found out, was difficult to relay to the living. The book has a lot of soul searching, twists, & turns, that makes it hard to put down.

Upon completion of the book, I immediately started it's sequal.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

4 1/2 stars. Detective Kevin Fahey is dead and working harder than ever. After dying in the line of duty, Fahey is just stuck, hanging around and watching people. He is learning a lot about human nature because his perception has been enhanced. One day he is approached by another ghost, that of a victim of a crime he had closed and she leads him to the scene of a criime identical to her own murder. Now Fahey is determined to right the wrong he unknowingly committed. Unknown to them, Fahey joins his old partner Danny and the new detective, Maggie. Danny is anything but stellar at his job (like Fahey in his time) but Maggie is something else and Fahey instantly bonds to her.

I don't want to give anything away, so I will just go on to say that i REALLY enjoyed this book. It is very well written and insightful about human nature. The killer in the story is pure evil but definitely kept in his place, the bad guy, not some sort of bizarre anti-hero. This book sets up the cast of characters very well. I am looking forward to the next Dead Detective mystery.

[Dharia Scarab · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book started out alright, but when the author reveals the identity of the killer to the ghost half way through the book, it spoils the mystery for me.
Since I've already got the second book in this series, I'll give it a try and hope the author does better next time.

Since I don't normally write reviews unless I have something specific to say, here's the break down of how I rate my books...

1 star... This book was bad, so bad I may have given up and skipped to the end. I will avoid this author like the plague in the future.

2 stars... This book was not very good, and I won't be reading any more from the author.

3 stars... This book was ok, but I won't go out of my way to read more, But if I find another book by the author for under a dollar I'd pick it up.

4 stars... I really enjoyed this book and will definitely be on the look out to pick up more from the series/author.

5 stars... I loved this book! It had earned a permanent home in my collection and I'll be picking up the rest of the series and other books from the author ASAP.