Queen Park A Detective Lane Mystery Garry Ryan 9781896300849 Books
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Queen Park A Detective Lane Mystery Garry Ryan 9781896300849 Books
With some of my favorite gay mystery writers (such as Nava, Craft, Wilson and Stevenson) having concluded their long-running series, I have been looking out for possible replacements from lesser-known authors. I ran across the "Detective Lane" series (only two books, so far) written by Garry Ryan, a high school teacher in Calgary (Canada) who wanted to depict the diverse community in which he lives.Detective Lane (the author apparently isn't real big on last names, so most characters are identified just by their first) is well known in the Calgary Police Department, both for being an excellent detective who specializes in missing persons cases as well as being one of the few openly gay members of the force. The latter has made him a target of occasional harassment by less-enlightened fellow officers, and made him a bit of a loner, working primarily by himself, occasionally aided by his life-partner Arthur, who worked from their home. It's a nice neighborhood, despite a busybody next door neighbor with a secret of her own.
In "Queen's Park," Detective Lane is sent to investigate the disappearance of the town's former mayor, Bob Swatsky, disappears following a bungled attempt at sexually molesting a teenage boy. In the days that follow, it also becomes known that he took with him an estimated $13 million swindled from the state from a shady land deal. Lane interviews Ernie, the young man who was attacked, and his colorful second generation Italian family, including a feisty aunt who chain-smokes while wheeling around her medicinal oxygen tank, and a widowed grandfather who has set up housekeeping with a likelike silicone female doll. The family claims not to know Swatsky's whereabouts, but Lane has his doubts. Apparently, so do two thugs with connections to Swatsky, who are trying to pressure the family into revealing his whereabouts, so they can get a share of the cash. It's a tough case, on which Lane reluctantly agrees to have help, in the person of Harper, a colleague who was one of Lane's bigoted critics until the gay detective once saved his life.
The book is very well written, with engaging, realistic and diverse characters. My only critique is that I thought some of the characters were somewhat stereotypically cartoonish, but I would still give it four stars out of five.
Tags : Queen's Park: A Detective Lane Mystery [Garry Ryan] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <P>Detective Lane has a knack for discovering the whereabouts of missing persons. But the city’s latest case has disappeared without a trace. After a brutal attack on his young nephew, ex-mayor Bob Swatsky has gone missing with 13 million dollars of tax-payers’ money. Is he on the run with the cash, or is it something more sinister? A zany cast of characters, including a love doll, and a chain-smoking grandma with an oxygen tank, lead Detective Lane on a thrilling romp through the streets of Calgary.</P>,Garry Ryan,Queen's Park: A Detective Lane Mystery,Newest Pr,1896300847,Literary,Crime & mystery,FICTION Literary,FICTION Mystery & Detective Police Procedural,Fiction,Fiction - Mystery Detective,FictionLiterary,Mystery & Detective - Police Procedural,MysterySuspense
Queen Park A Detective Lane Mystery Garry Ryan 9781896300849 Books Reviews
As mystery novels/police procedurals go, this one is just okay. It took me a while to get into it and while I was able to finish it, it felt a bit "light" --not much substance and everything too easily resolved. Also, the characters were one dimensional and didn't get rounded out as the story went along. Finally, there were unanswered questions (e.g. SPOILER who was buried in the top grave? They kept referring to it but no explanation was ever provided. END SPOILER.) There were characters about whom one really knew nothing -- that made it hard to care and/or to see exactly how they fit in (e.g. Ernie's cousin Lisa). I don't regret the time I spent on this short read, but I don't think I would recommend it -- specially at such an inflated price!
Start of a great new series of Gay mystery novels. Garry Ryan has a great future; anyone who can create the image of a teenager dragging his grandfather out of the rough on a golf course "like a seal being dragged over the ice in a Inuit documentary" is A-alright with me. Hope to learn more of the hinted parts of Detective Lane's relationship with his life partner, Authur.
This is the first book in a wonderful series. Garry Ryan writes a good mystery. The beginning was difficult but once you get to the characters the rhythm begins. Great characters! Really enjoy the series.
In the end I was satisfied.
A member of the Calgary, Alberta, police force, Detective Lane is presented the mystery of what happened both to an embezzler accused of attempting to rape his 15-year-old nephew and to the money taken. The investigation introduces him to a dysfunctional family, some of whose members nevertheless manage to keep functioning and whose antics often provide unexpected comic relief. When evidence almost at once begins to point to the nephew having accidentally and unknowingly killed the man, Lane must worry whether he really is onto the truth and what effect it will have on the boy. Halfway through the case, he gains a new partner, Harper, whose life he once saved. To Lane's surprise, Harper starts combatting the homophobic slurs Lane has learned to ignore, Harper having seen such hate cause his own nephew to try to kill himself. This very rich and very readable novel tells its story in short scenes, cinemagraphic style. Though it is not a canine mystery, it will also appeal to dog lovers.
I enjoy mysteries series featuring gay detective/investigator, more so when he has a little help from his spouse. Tom and Scott, Mark Manning, the Potrait series, Adrien English, Henry Rios, Alex Reynolds Mysteries, Donald Strachey series, Todd Mills, Dick Hardesty.. just to name my favorites. Sadly most of these series have discontinued. I am glad to have found a refreshing one in Detective Lane. Mystery, family drama, quirky characters, this first in the series is well written and have me turning the pages eagerly. The solving of the "Who did it" is not the climax but the dramatic events leading to a humane resolution in this tightly woven story.
Much more than a mystery, this is also a story with a heart as it touches on sexual abuses and homophobia. I would have preferred there to be more on Dectective Lane's background and his obviously painful past. Perhaps this will be delved into in the second book "The Lucky Elephant Restaurant" which I look forward to reading.
With some of my favorite gay mystery writers (such as Nava, Craft, Wilson and Stevenson) having concluded their long-running series, I have been looking out for possible replacements from lesser-known authors. I ran across the "Detective Lane" series (only two books, so far) written by Garry Ryan, a high school teacher in Calgary (Canada) who wanted to depict the diverse community in which he lives.
Detective Lane (the author apparently isn't real big on last names, so most characters are identified just by their first) is well known in the Calgary Police Department, both for being an excellent detective who specializes in missing persons cases as well as being one of the few openly gay members of the force. The latter has made him a target of occasional harassment by less-enlightened fellow officers, and made him a bit of a loner, working primarily by himself, occasionally aided by his life-partner Arthur, who worked from their home. It's a nice neighborhood, despite a busybody next door neighbor with a secret of her own.
In "Queen's Park," Detective Lane is sent to investigate the disappearance of the town's former mayor, Bob Swatsky, disappears following a bungled attempt at sexually molesting a teenage boy. In the days that follow, it also becomes known that he took with him an estimated $13 million swindled from the state from a shady land deal. Lane interviews Ernie, the young man who was attacked, and his colorful second generation Italian family, including a feisty aunt who chain-smokes while wheeling around her medicinal oxygen tank, and a widowed grandfather who has set up housekeeping with a likelike silicone female doll. The family claims not to know Swatsky's whereabouts, but Lane has his doubts. Apparently, so do two thugs with connections to Swatsky, who are trying to pressure the family into revealing his whereabouts, so they can get a share of the cash. It's a tough case, on which Lane reluctantly agrees to have help, in the person of Harper, a colleague who was one of Lane's bigoted critics until the gay detective once saved his life.
The book is very well written, with engaging, realistic and diverse characters. My only critique is that I thought some of the characters were somewhat stereotypically cartoonish, but I would still give it four stars out of five.
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