Since it is Friday again that means it
is time for Friday’s Forgotten Books hosted by Patti Abbott. Not only should
you be reading her blog, you
should be reading her works such as the soon to be released Concrete Angel. You should also be
reading author Frank Zafiro---especially if you like police procedurals. The
below review dates back to 2011 when I first told you about Dead Even: A River City Crime Anthology …
The men and woman of the fictional River City police
department located somewhere in Eastern Washington are not super cops. They are
real life human beings with their own lives on and off the job. Lives that
contain hopes, dreams, shattered expectations, and failure just like the rest
of us. Through novels that began with Under A Raging Moon, continued
with Heroes Often Fail and continued in the most recent Beneath
A Weeping Sky released last March, as well as numerous stories in a
variety of markets, author Frank Zafiro has a consistently used his experiences
as well as ones of other fellow police officers to make the characters he
writes about alive for the reader.
The fifteen stories in this book released last October by
Gray Dog Press have all appeared before either online in various venues or in
print publication. Several of these stories were finalists for the Derringer
award given out annually by the Short Mystery Fiction Society. For those
familiar with the novels, these stories further explore events before or in
between the books. For readers new to the works of Frank Zafiro, these stories
give you a glimpse of the treats to come in the novels.
The anthology is broken into four
sections named for some of the characters in the novels. After a forward that
briefly explains how the book was pulled together and his intentions, author
Frank Zafiro starts off with the section on “Katie MacLeod.” The three stories,
“Last Day In Paradise, “Three Days of Christmas,” and “Home for Christmas”
revolve around Katie Macleod and are far after events in the first two novels.
They showcase some of the motivations that drive this complex and intriguing
character as well as several different cases.
The section on the detective tag team of “Finch and Elias”
is next starting on page 55. There are five stories here and include “Be My
Santa Baby,” “Finch and Elias,” “Core Issue,” “The Bastard Mummy” and “The
Worst Door.” Along with working some harsh and some funny cases, readers
are treated to the dynamics between the detectives who may grate on each other
occasionally but always have the partner’s back. These stories are interlocked,
beginning with a robbery gone bad in “Be My Santa Baby” and carry the crimes
forward to solving the case and the repercussions in successive stories. Many
of the stories in this anthology work the same way detailing events from
different perspectives and how the ripples from the original event spread
outwards to touch other lives in ways unforeseen.
Beginning on page 155 is the section
on “Paul Heiro” and features two stories titled “Running Into Darkness” and “If
Only.” Paul Heiro is one of several rather tragic figures in the River City
series. A strong theme of Mr. Zafiro’s work is the idea that events shape
people causing some to get stronger while others go down. That path, up or
down, is almost predetermined or fate for some characters and Paul Heiro seems
to be one of those destined to go down.
It is not just the men and women who
wear the badge that get the full character building treatment making them come
alive for the reader. The victims as well as the criminals come fully alive for
readers. One of the higher profile criminals, and there are several, is
“Dominic Bracco” and his section begins on page 175.
The section contains five stories titled “The Meat-cutter’s
Wife,” “Pride Goeth,” “And A Fall Cometh,” “Rescuing Isaac” and the title story
of the anthology “Dead Even.” A New Jersey mobster exiled to River City in
eastern Washington, Dominic Bracco is trying to get along with everyone while
bringing his own business style to the area. The problem for him is he doesn't
have the muscle to compete; he can't go against the Russian mob, or the other
criminal interests in the area. And every now and then Uncle Angelo reaches out
and wants something done and just can't get the basic fact that the state of
Washington is not New Jersey. A dark figure that is also very smart and
charming, his relationship with others is fascinating to watch---from a
distance.
At 253 pages including publication notes for the stories and
bio, this is a fast read. Many of the stories are very interconnected--not only
with each other---but telling the same story from a different character's
perspective. Violence and its descriptive depictions are present at times, but
when they do appear, they are limited and not gratuitous. Instead of focusing
on the carnage when it happens, as some authors do, Mr. Zafiro consistently
focuses on the psychological aspects of events. How events work on the
character of the individual, shape future actions, etc. Whether they be law
enforcement or otherwise, how people hold up under expectations of others while
dealing with events is a focus of these stories as well as the novels that
feature the characters living their lives in the small town of River City.
Those new to the author's work will discover a terse writing
style filled full with emotion and nuances in these stories. The characters
will come alive with some you knew from the start heading on a path where
things will not go well. The book can serve as a great introduction to the
novels as characters are introduced through story as well as brief explanations
at the beginning of the sections and the stories themselves.
For those well familiar with the
novels, Dead Even: A River City Crime Anthology is a chance to
read stories you may have missed on other venues and an opportunity to
reacquaint with old friends. The latest River City novel titled And Every
Man Has To Die is currently scheduled to be released in March by Gray
Dog Press.
Dead Even: A River City Crime
Anthology
Frank Zafiro
Gray Dog Press
March 2010
ISBN# 978-1-936178-33-9
253 Pages
Paperback
$16.95
(Kindle version currently $2.99)
(Kindle version currently $2.99)
ARC supplied by the author in
exchange for my objective review.
Kevin R. Tipple © 2011, 2015
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