I have long
been a fan of author John McMahon’s work. See his three-book series that starts
with The
Good Detective. So, when Head Cases came up on NetGalley,
I quickly put in for it. Even though I had quite a few already assigned to me,
Minotaur Books quickly approved my request. Very glad they did that. Especially
since the book is so very good.
FBI Agent
Gardner Camden has skills. Not social skills as he has a hard time reading
people and situations and, as a result, he is awkward. After a recent event, he
does not venture out of the field office in Jacksonville, Florida. He prefers
it that way as his skills are aimed at solving riddles and enigmas, and has an
incredible wealth of knowledge. His ability to solve things is why he and his
partner, Agent Cassie Pardo were put on a plane and sent to DFW airport.
How does a
dead man die twice, years apart?
Ross Tignon,
identified as being dead years ago, is very much dead again. This time he is
dead on his kitchen floor, next to the kitchen island that borders the living
room. The blood pool under the body trails over to and under the refrigerator.
Back in 2013,
Ross Tignon was the suspect in a series of murders in Florida. Agent Camden was
on the hunt, chasing him down while he built the case, and then a fire occurred
in Tignon’s home. While his wife was brought out, injured but alive, a male was
not so lucky. Dental records indicated that the body was Ross Tignon. At, least
what was left of him one the fire was out.
The man on
the floor, known to the locals as Bob Breckinridge, is Ross Tignon. Clearly, he
did not die easy as he was cut open wide in the stomach area. He was cut again
in his chest. The killer cut the numbers “5” and “0” into his chest. Agent
Camden has no idea what the number could mean though, Agent Pardo thinks it
might represent the police, aka 5-0.
Agent Camden,
Cassie, and three other folks work in a specialized unit of the F.B.I. known as
PAR for Patterns and Recognition. Their job is to consider cases that are
stalled. Review them, identify peculiarities in them, and offer new theories of
investigation. PAR then gives the case back to the relevant field office or
sends it to headquarters. They don’t go into the field because everyone in the
unit has a particular quirky skill that is useful and a history of screwing up
in some way.
Being sent
out in the field never happens. Yet it has this time. The reason was that it
was supposed to be because the boss wanted Agent Camden to see the body and
verify it really was Ross Tignon. With that being done, they should be soon on
their way back to the home base in Florida.
Instead, and
just after they turn the scene over to agents out of Dallas office, they are
sent to Rawlings, New Mexico. After serving thirty-one years for multiple
murders back in the 90s, Barry Fisher was just released days earlier. Every
agent studies his case in the FBI Academy. He is a legend in bad way. He is now
dead and Camden and Pardo are headed to New Mexico.
Not only
that, but in a first, Agent Camden will lead the investigation. A serial killer
is killing serial killers.
What follows
is a fast moving and complex police procedural. While the focus is on Camden,
the rest of the team and several other characters are fully developed and
multifaceted. So too is the killer who the reader gets to know through the
working of the case. Not by the usual mind of the killer POV technique in
dedicated chapters that so many authors use. The absence of that predictable
and utterly boring author technique was a major relief to this reader.
We learn
everything from Agent Camden’s perspective. A man that has special skills, a
different way of looking at the world, and a very hard time fitting in with
people. A character that very much spoke to this reader.
According to
the author’s acknowledgment at the end of the read, this is the first book of a
two-book contract. The second in the series will come out early in 2026. I was
thrilled to read this news. Head Cases was/is a great read and very much worth
your time.
Amazon Associate
Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4a4ObRI
My digital ARC reading copy came from Minotaur Books, through NetGalley, with no expectation of a review.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2025
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