Eight stars
Always excited to discover a new author, I gladly embarked on this adventurous political thriller series by Joseph Flynn. Jim McGill, a former cop whose life has been altered when his second wife is elected as the US president, seeks to define himself and chooses to open a PI firm in the heart of DC. He wants to stay close to the people and chooses not to engage in too many 'formal duties' . However, he gladly accepts a chance to travel with President Grant to Europe, where she will attend the G8 Summit. While President Grant rubs elbows in England, McGill takes on a case of a former police acquaintance in Paris, accused of killing a popular footballer (soccer, to us North Americans) during a scuffle. The evidence is strong, but McGill hopes to show a local magistrate that nothing is quite as it seems. Flynn does well with this story and keeps the reader engaged until the every end.
Jim McGill is always one up for an adventure, usually found during a case with his PI firm. However, he cannot turn down the invitation by his wife, US President Patricia Grant, to attend a state dinner with the Queen of England in London. President Grant will be keeping herself busy for a week beforehand at the G8 Summit, leaving McGill to fill his time.
While many would think museums and photo opportunities should help pass the time, Jim McGill lucks into something when a client graces his door. Daughter of a former acquaintance on the Chicago Police Department, she tells the story of how her father is being held in Paris for murdering a man during a scuffle. Trouble is, this is a former football superstar who is the love of many across France. McGill learns of how his former colleague was in Paris to scatter his wife's ashes, but intervened when he saw a woman being attacked, as the ensuring fight left the sports star dead. The woman who was being attacked has disappeared unable to support the American's alibi.
Tasked with heading to Paris to get to the truth, McGill agrees, with a promise to be ready to attend the State Dinner with President Grant in a week. While in France, McGill meets a powerful magistrate who is conducting his own investigation into the crime. Together, they try to peel things back, working under the rules of the French judicial system, though McGill is apt to use all the items in his possession to get to the truth. What they discover will not only be hard to prove, but essential to keep an American out of French prisons for a lifetime. All while things run amok back in DC for McGill's work partner, as she tries to piece together a shooting of a reputable security member. The story moves along and McGill knows how important solving things will be for his colleague and the country as a while. Flynn does a masterful job here and kept me up flipping pages well into the night.
Joseph Flynn effectively melds politics into a strong police procedural, leaving the reader eager to delve into this story, which connects well with the series debut. The story gains momentum as soon as the backstory is presented, leaving the reader to hold on as things rush forward. Juggling a number of narratives that tell the numerous stories on offer, Flynn keeps the reader appraised of them all as things progress. The use of 'chapters' is a deceiving aspect that Flynn presents, actually creating nine parts to the book and using numbered divisions within to delve deeper into the story, the true chapters of the book. This is masterful, though somewhat cunning at the same time. The characters who appear are well-paced and developed to keep the reader guessing, leaving many to wonder how they will fare throughout the piece. McGill shows some of his true colour and this helps provide the reader with a well-rounded picture of the protagonist, without getting too bogged down.
The central plot point of the story works well against some of the secondary stories that emerge. I can only hope to see this as the series progresses, as Flynn does well to juggle everything, without shortchanging the reader at any point. There is mystery, intrigue, and a great deal of plot twisting along the way, providing something both entertaining and informative for the reader to enjoy. A longer piece, but it needed it, in hindsight, to fully hash out all the mysteries that took place. I look forward to seeing where things are headed and how Jim McGill will keep things moving to provide the reader with more excitement.
Kudos, Mr. Flynn, for leaving me eager to delve deeper into this series.
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