D. B. Elrogg
is the pen name of husband and wife writing duo Harvey and Alyce
Goldberg. Their private investigator Milo Rathkey of Duluth, Minnesota, first
appears in Great Party! Sorry about the Murder (Independently published,
2018). Rathkey is a former law enforcement officer and remains on excellent
terms with the local police department, which is trying to coax him to return
as a consultant for some of their tough cases. Just now Milo is content to eke
out a living doing skip traces and following the occasional errant spouse. He
rents a couple of rooms over a bakery for a pittance and takes his turn hosting
his weekly poker group.
Milo’s life takes
an enormous turn when he learns that he has inherited half of the estate where
his mother was the household cook during his childhood. Milo always liked and
admired owner John McKnight but it never occurred to Milo that he might be
remembered in McKnight’s will. Part of the inheritance requires him to live in
the old house. As soon as he moves in, Mary Alice Bonner, one of his neighbors
in the upscale community, invited him to her lavish New Year’s Eve party. There
he meets his host James Bonner, a wealthy real estate developer. Bonner is
loud, abrasive, and gratuitously offensive to family, friends, and strangers
alike. When Bonner is found shot New Year’s Day, the suspect list is long,
starting with his wife and his son and moving on to the various competitors
that he had cheated.
The story splits
between Milo’s inquiries and the formal police probe. A significant subplot is
Milo’s adapting to his changed life and the professional people like bankers
and financial planners that it brings. Milo couldn’t help but notice that a
couple of thugs who work for the local crime boss were hanging around the
Bonner mansion the morning after the murder. His inquiries about them led to
other questions about buildings in abandoned areas of Duluth which turned up a novel
real estate fraud scheme that Bonner may have been behind.
The actual
solution was a complete surprise, although it was logical and obvious, the
possibility got lost amid all of the other potential and more likely killers.
There are six
books in the series so far, all modestly priced for ebook. Recommended especially
for fans of private investigator mysteries.
·
Publisher: DB Elrogg (January 24, 2018)
·
Language: English
·
Paperback: 364 pages
·
ISBN-10: 0999820001
·
ISBN-13: 978-0999820001
Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2024
Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works
on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.
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