Publication date: August 12, 2014 by Alibi
Source: Publisher via TLC Book Tours for an honest review
Description:
In Michael Murphy’s action-packed Prohibition-era novel of suspense, a mystery writer returns to the bright lights and dark alleys of New York City—uncovering a criminal conspiracy of terrifying proportions.
In 1933, America is at a crossroads: Prohibition will soon be history, organized crime is rampant, and President Roosevelt promises to combat the Great Depression with a New Deal. In these uncertain times, former-Pinkerton-detective-turned-bestselling-author Jake Donovan is beckoned home to Manhattan. He has made good money as the creator of dashing gumshoe Blackie Doyle, but the price of success was Laura Wilson, the woman he left behind. Now a Broadway star, Laura is engaged to a millionaire banker—and waltzing into a dangerous trap.
Before Jake can win Laura back, he’s nearly killed—and his former partner is shot dead—after a visit to the Yankee Club, a speakeasy dive in their old Queens neighborhood. Suddenly Jake and Laura are plunged into a conspiracy that runs afoul of gangsters, sweeping from New York’s private clubs to the halls of corporate power and to the White House itself. Brushing shoulders with the likes of Dashiell Hammett, Cole Porter, and Babe Ruth, Jake struggles to expose an inconspicuous organization hidden in plain sight, one determined to undermine the president and change the country forever.
My Take:
I wasn't sure what to expect when I agreed to participate in the tour for The Yankee Club. I needn't have worried at all. This was just a straight-up fun read from start to finish. Jake Donovan is such a great lead character - he is funny and sarcastic and a decent guy. Jake returns to New York from Florida to deal with some last minute publication issues on his forthcoming detective novel. See how this will be fun? Jake is a former-detective writing detective novels and the star of a detective novel.
The reader gets to hang out with a host of great characters besides Jake. Naturally, there is Laura, the love of Jake's life who is currently engaged to a millionaire banker of the outwardly-suave-and-handsome-but-also-probably-evil variety. But I think my favorite characters besides Jake, were Gino,the guy from his old neighborhood who owns a speakeasy and Frankie, Jake's driver who drinks way too much to be a driver.
I enjoyed that the mystery that Jake starts out investigating - finding the killer of his friend - turns into something else entirely. The scope of the story changes dramatically and there are many dubious characters that Jake must contend with. The reader gets to follow Jake as he figures out who is trustworthy and who is not -- but not always as quickly or as easily as he might wish. Things are not always as they seem. I appreciated how Murphy brought real people into the story and managed to make it work really well.
I really liked The Yankee Club and will happily recommend it to anyone - especially those who like historical/period fiction and mysteries. This was one of those books that was just fun to read. I enjoyed the mystery and the danger, but I was also confident that Jake could handle whatever was thrown at him - with a little help from his friends, of course.
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About Michael Murphy
Michael Murphy is a full time author and part time urban chicken rancher in Arizona. He lives in Arizona with his wife of forty-one years and the four children they adopted this past year. In August, Random House Alibi will publish his ninth novel, a historical mystery set in the prohibition era, The Yankee Club.Michael Murphy’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:
Monday, August 4th: Reading RealityTuesday, August 5th: 5 Minutes for Books
Wednesday, August 6th: Bibliotica
Friday, August 8th: ImaginativeMinds*
Monday, August 11th: The Book Binder’s Daughter
Tuesday, August 12th: Read a Latte
Wednesday, August 13th: “I Think I’m Obsessed!” Book Reviews
Thursday, August 14th: The Reader’s Hollow
Friday, August 15th: Mystery Playground – Author Guest Post “Drinks with Reads”
Monday, August 18th: Joyfully Retired
Tuesday, August 19th: Life by Kristen
Tuesday, August 19th: Dwell in Possibility
Wednesday, August 20th: Nightly Reading
Thursday, August 21st: A Book Geek
Friday, August 22nd: From the TBR Pile
Monday, August 25th: Laura’s Booklist
Friday, August 29th: Harlie’s Books
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So glad you enjoyed The Yankee Club. It was great fun writing about the bright lights and dark alleys of New York City in 1933.
ReplyDeleteI can't remember the last time I read a book set in this time period - looks like I'll need to visit it again soon!
ReplyDeleteThanks for being a part of the tour!