Hunsicker, Harry – STILL RIVER

[LJ Roberts]

STILL RIVER (Private Investigator-Dallas-Cont) – G-
Hunsicker, Harry – 1st book
Thomas Dunne Books, 2005- Hardcover

PI Lee Henry "Hank" Oswald is a Gulf War approached by a former schoolmate to find her brother, a former drug addict and alcoholic. Hank's dying partner, Ernie, asks Hank to help his niece, Nolan, also an investigator. The case evolves to include murder, violent drug dealers and a major real estate scam.

Some have compared this book to Lehane and Connelly. While I understand the comparison, to me this book just didn't have the same cachet as those. Hank is interesting and there are the well-armed, violent, gay-couple sidekicks, but I never felt connected to them. Hank gets beat up and shot, and shot, and shot but is the proverbial Timex. There are a lot of bad guys without any of them being memorable. The dialogue is good, although the author needs to ensure he does not overuse the phrase (paraphrasing) "If someone knows of a better…I wish they'd show me." The author works too hard at cleaver names for his characters: Lee Henry Oswald, for a book set in Dallas; Vera Drinkwater, client with an alcoholic brother; bad guys Clairol and Fagen. For all that, the story moves well and there are some clever moments. The book was good, but didn't knock me out.