Synopses & Reviews
With a disastrous election looming, the police on his heels, adultery in the air, a body on his conscience, and a gun buried in his backyard . . . Murray Whelan faces his biggest test yet.
Murray Whelan should have been asleep in bed. Thats where the smart money was at 4:30 a.m. on a cold, wet, southern Australia winter morning. Not loitering among the truck drivers in Melbournes fruit and vegetable market. Not picking a fight with a gun-toting kid in a cashmere coat. Not tasting forbidden fruit in the back of Donny Maitlands rig. Not turning his back on a body that bore a striking resemblance to a sack of tomatoes en route to becoming spaghetti sauce. But whats a lonely political advisor to do? His son, Red, on temporary loan to his ex-wife, has disappeared, and his boss, Angelo Agnelli, has sent him on a mission to infiltrate the toughest union in the country. And that was before Angelo asked him the really big askthe favor that youd have to be a fool, or maybe just Murray Whelan, to agree to. Now nothing can save him from another wildly funny, fresh, and fast-paced comic misadventure.
Review
Maloney just gets better, and Murray Whelan remains one of the most reliable and rewarding sleuths in the business.” Ian Rankin
Murray is a great creation. . . . Takes the wisecracking wise guy into a whole new realm.” Houston Chronicle
Bubbles with wise-guy wit, macho machinations, and testosterone tactics . . . The wit is sharp and on target.” Providence Journal
Full of laugh-out-loud humor.” Marie Claire
"The political intrigues of a South Australian city may not seem the stuff of high drama, but they areand Whelan's a delight." Seattle Times/Post-Intelligencer
Synopsis
Murray Whelan is in trouble. A disastrous election is looming, and his days as advisor to Angelo Agnelli, minister for transport, may be numbered. His son, on loan to his ex-wife, is missing and may be in danger. His ex-fling, Heather, is prowling for his inner prince. And on an icy Melbourne winter morning, he has a rendezvous with a renegade driver in the corrupt truckers union. After that meeting, and a possible run-in with a well-known Italian self-help organization, nothing can save him from another wildly funny, fresh, and fast-paced comic misadventure.
About the Author
Shane Maloney is the author of
Stiff, The Brush-Offwinner of the Ned Kelly Award for Best Crime Fictionand
Nice Try. Two of his Murray Whelan novels have been adapted for television in Australia. In 2009, Mr. Maloney received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Crime Writers Association of Australia. He resides in Melbourne, Australia.