Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: Malibu Burning by Lee Goldberg

Malibu Burning by Lee Goldberg (Thomas & Mercer, 2023) finally drifted up my TBR stack and I tackled it over the weekend. I didn’t know anything about the book and I was delighted to see that the primary characters are arson investigators. I have wondered for years why arson investigators are not considered interesting enough to feature as leads in crime fiction. Homicide detectives, private eyes, department store detectives, insurance investigators, even food inspectors and railroad detectives, but I don’t remember seeing arson investigators as anything but incidental characters. Much of what they do is based on science, and I can understand that analyzing burn patterns and checking for accelerants does not make a scintillating read but I always thought it was fascinating.

Walter Sharpe is an old hand in the arson shop. He draws Andrew Walker as his new partner. Walker is a former U.S. Marshal, a bit of a cowboy, but his pregnant wife pressured him to find a job that would bring him home at night and arson seemed to be a likely alternative. With the wildfires in southern California never-ending and the winds whipping the smallest spark into an inferno that consumes acres of forest and millions of dollars in real estate, the arson department did not lack for work.

Danny Cole is a likable and talented thief, aided in his chosen profession by a significant degree of intelligence and creativity. His attention is drawn to the mega mansions in Malibu. These over-the-top residences (20 bedrooms! 40 bathrooms!) are full of valuable collectibles, art, jewelry, and cash. He decides that a well-placed wildfire would force the residents to flee, leaving the contents of their homes open to plunder.

The narrative moves back and forth between the investigators and the thieves. Along the way it draws attention to the political maneuvering that directs scarce fire protection resources to the wealthy and away from those who need them more. An informative thread describes the California convict firefighting program in which prisoners have the option to join a firefighting unit instead of living in a cell. A quick internet search says at least 14 states have programs that use inmates as firefighting resources and that they are considered essential in rural areas.

With over 50 books and multiple popular television series to his credit Goldberg is a master at character development, consistent pacing, and inventive plotting. I liked it!

The second adventure of Sharpe and Walker was released in September 2024 and the third is scheduled for April 2025. A promising new series. Starred review from Library Journal.

·         Publisher: ‎Thomas & Mercer (September 1, 2023)

·         Language: ‎English

·         Hardcover: ‎304 pages

·         ISBN-10: ‎166250067X

·         ISBN-13: ‎978-1662500671

 

Amazon Associate Purchase Link:  https://amzn.to/3Csm2qW

Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2024

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.

Review: Malibu Burning by Lee Goldberg

While I told you about this book before back in February, tomorrow is publication day, so I am running my review again. Make sure you read Lesa Holstine's review here. 

 

If you have read Lost Hills by Lee Goldberg, you know that a part of that book involves a wildfire on the rampage through the Santa Monica Mountains in Malibu. That book, part of the Eve Ronin series, is from the perspective of law enforcement. Malibu Burning is that same fire from the perspective of arson investigator, Walter Sharpe, and his new partner, Andrew Walker.

Walker is a former United States Marshal who has taken what he thinks will be a quieter job as an arson investigator tied into the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department. Mentally he is having a hard time with it as he left the service and changed jobs to ally his wife’s fears as she is pregnant and had a lot of concern over his safety and the way he did the job. Bad knees and other issues means he can’t be as physical as he would like and has to slow it down a little bit. He prefers to work alone, as does his new partner, Walter Sharpe.

The fact that both are loners by nature means nothing to the powers that be who have chosen to put them together. From the start, they do not exactly mesh well, but Walker needs Sharpe to teach him what he does not know about fire investigation. And Walker can teach him a few things about man hunting as they have arsonists to chase.

One of which is somebody known to Walker. A former prisoner by the name of Danny Cole. He is a superb con man and a very good thief. He should have gotten away on the last job, but made a choice to help someone. That choice cost him his freedom. Now he is out and looking for a big payday and to settle a score. He is planning to do it with a team pf highly motivated folks, some of whom he has worked with before, and a wildfire.

Not that Walker and Sharpe knows this from the start. The reader knows far more than the investigators do as numerous flashbacks are sprinkled liberally through the read all the way up to present day. That is intermixed with Sharpe teaching Walker, and by extension the reader, basics surrounding fire and the dynamics of a wildfire through a couple of other cases and the early stages of this fire.

The first of what clearly is intended to be a series, Malibu Burning, is an enjoyable read. While it comes across as a vehicle for a tv series more than anything, there is enough complexity and action to hold the reader’s interest. This reader much prefers the Eve Ronin series. However, this was a good book in its own right and I will be looking for the next one.

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3ZjzK9j

 

My reading copy was an ARC by way of NetGalley. 

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2023

The First Two Pages: “Wildfire” by Kathy A. Norris

 The First Two Pages: “Wildfire” by Kathy A. Norris

Lesa's Book Critiques: MALIBU BURNING BY LEE GOLDBERG

 Lesa's Book Critiques: MALIBU BURNING BY LEE GOLDBERG

Review: Malibu Burning by Lee Goldberg

 

If you have read Lost Hills by Lee Goldberg, you know that a part of that book involves a wildfire on the rampage through the Santa Monica Mountains in Malibu. That book, part of the Eve Ronin series, is from the perspective of law enforcement. Malibu Burning is that same fire from the perspective of arson investigator, Walter Sharpe, and his new partner, Andrew Walker.

Walker is a former United States Marshal who has taken what he thinks will be a quieter job as an arson investigator tied into the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department. Mentally he is having a hard time with it as he left the service and changed jobs to ally his wife’s fears as she is pregnant and had a lot of concern over his safety and the way he did the job. Bad knees and other issues means he can’t be as physical as he would like and has to slow it down a little bit. He prefers to work alone, as does his new partner, Walter Sharpe.

The fact that both are loners by nature means nothing to the powers that be who have chosen to put them together. From the start, they do not exactly mesh well, but Walker needs Sharpe to teach him what he does not know about fire investigation. And Walker can teach him a few things about man hunting as they have arsonists to chase.

One of which is somebody known to Walker. A former prisoner by the name of Danny Cole. He is a superb con man and a very good thief. He should have gotten away on the last job, but made a choice to help someone. That choice cost him his freedom. Now he is out and looking for a big payday and to settle a score. He is planning to do it with a team pf highly motivated folks, some of whom he has worked with before, and a wildfire.

Not that Walker and Sharpe knows this from the start. The reader knows far more than the investigators do as numerous flashbacks are sprinkled liberally through the read all the way up to present day. That is intermixed with Sharpe teaching Walker, and by extension the reader, basics surrounding fire and the dynamics of a wildfire through a couple of other cases and the early stages of this fire.

The first of what clearly is intended to be a series, Malibu Burning, is an enjoyable read. While it comes across as a vehicle for a tv series more than anything, there is enough complexity and action to hold the reader’s interest. This reader much prefers the Eve Ronin series. However, this was a good book in its own right and I will be looking for the next one.

 

My reading copy was an ARC by way of NetGalley. The book is now  scheduled to be released on September 1st. 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2023

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: The Stars Are Fire by Anita Shreve

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