So, what are the odds? Like Dodgers, the third book nominated for the MWA Edgar for Best First Novel has an inner city, drug dealing-slash-thieving setting. It also is a coming-of-age story, as a young man grows into adulthood. But IQ, Joe Ide’s debut novel, is also funny and jam-packed with a cast of characters that is made for the big screen. It’s a trip in itself, but it also calls out for a sequel. Good news – Entertainment Weekly says Ide now has a four-book deal!
Here’s the deal: teenage Isaiah Quintabe lives with his older brother Marcus. Marcus is smart, focused, gives good advice, and can build anything, repair anything, in fact, do just about anything with his hands. Marcus clearly could have done more with his life, but he’s found his groove, just raising his brother to be a good man, to go to college, to have a future. And it’s working out great, because Isaiah is smart, thoughtful and an all-around good kid. And did I mention he was seriously smart? And so all is well until one day, when Isaiah and Marcus are just walking down the street, a car speeds around the corner and Marcus flies into the air. And just like that, Isaiah is left alone.
Of course, he falls apart. And he also beats himself up. Because he was right there, and saw nothing. Whoever killed Marcus is going to get away with it. So he starts to dig. And as he gets a clue, and spends hours, each day, just sitting and looking for a particular car. And he uses that time to train his observation skills.
Flash forward eight years and Isaiah’s still in the neighborhood, but now in demand as a detective and all-around problem-solver. Juanell Dodson, roommate, former classmate, and all around smartass with pretentions, has hooked him up with Calvin Wright, a rapper and potential murder victim. Between Cal and Dodson, there is plenty of outsize ego and crazy behavior to go around, especially since Cal is having a bit of a crisis. It’s like writer’s block for rappers, and he can’t cure it with pills, booze, or food. Isaiah’s job is to keep Cal alive while he figures out who’s behind the plot. Cui bono? Good question.
This is an amazing debut novel, and Isaiah is a character that demands serialization. In fact, pluck almost any of this rich and funny novel’s characters out for scrutiny: they hold up. The self-absorbed Deronda, who believes she deserves stardom because of the size of her booty. Magnus Westerveld, who created a new self in Skip Hanson, and bred a pit bull the size of a Volkswagen. Dodson, partner and devil. Flaco, Isaiah’s penance in human form, and so much more.
However, characters alone do not make a great detective novel. For that, you need plot. And there is plot in abundance. Inventive, believable, and hair-raising plot; Ide weaves present day and past, accommodating various sub-plots that add complexity and hilarity to great effect. And the end – when Isaiah finds the car that killed his brother? – great set-up for book #2.
Dodgers was heart-tugging and well-worth reading. IQ is that and more. It takes the top spot in the LL Edgar ranking.
Literary Lunchbox Rankings: Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award, Best First Novel
- IQ by Joe Ide
- Dodgers by Bill Beverly
- Under the Harrow by Flynn Berry
Bill Beverly’s debut novel, 
Literary Lunchbox Rankings: Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award, Best First Novel
At last week’s Academy Awards, several Oscar winners talked about how much it was an honor just to be nominated in their categories, and gave props to their fellow nominees. For the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Awards, it is truly an honor to make the final shortlist. I don’t know how many books are actually put forward for consideration, but it must be hundreds, and to have a book nominated in the Best First Author category is not only a fabulous acknowledgement of talent, but can be a career-maker.
Literary Lunchbox Rankings: Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award, Best First Novel
This is the fourth in the series featuring Long Beach police detective Danny Beckett, and the books have been pretty popular, in large part due to the breezy good-natured personality of the main character. He likes his new girlfriend, spends a lot of nights at her place, but is a little shy about giving her the title. They watch Downton Abbey and agree that he’s a lot like Mr. Bates. He worries that his job makes him hard to live with, plus he snores. He says he’s really only good at two things: investigating homicides and denial. And maybe not really denial.
So, 
Fourth up in the Best Original Paperback category of the 
Literary Lunchbox Rankings: Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award, Best Original Paperback
Nick Petrie’s Drifter – Reacher-esque?
The Drifter starts with a prologue – who is this man in the black canvas chore coat driving around in a pick-up truck with false id, buying fertilizer? We don’t know, but by the end of the book, we get to know this guy, his profession and his unusual code of honor that results in his partnering with Ash to foil a terrorist plot at the last minute. So, while I usually an not a prologue fan, I give this one a thumbs up because it builds suspense and is integral to the plot.
In the meantime, Ash is on his belly, crawling in the dirt under Dinah Johnson’s porch and trying to figure out a way to overpower a 140-lb. pitbull mix that’s dead-set against coming out, without getting maimed. His solution is clever and humane, and once he’s subdued the dog and tied it to a tree, his next action is to give it water from his own water bottle. “Dog’s thirsty,” he explains to Charlie Johnson, Dinah’s son.
And thus, in the first chapter, we know a lot about Peter Ash. We also know a lot about Nick Petrie – he knows how to set the stage, reveal character, and build suspense. Over the subsequent chapters, we find out why Ash is there – to atone for not being there for his Marine buddy, Sgt. Jimmy Johnson, who committed suicide the month before, leaving behind a widow (ER nurse Dinah) and two boys (Charlie and Miles). His pretext – doing “what needs to be done” as part of a VA program, which results in his offer to rebuild the Washington’s falling down porch. His baggage – he is suffering from PTSD and can only stand to be indoors for short periods of time.
Of course, the straightforward narrative becomes complicated almost immediately, when Ash discovers the dog was guarding a suitcase containing $400,000 and four packs of C4 explosive under that porch. A hard-looking case with a gun and a black SUV is lurking about. And Dinah turns out to have resources of her own, in the form of a long-time tie to a smooth, smart and strong local crime lord named Lewis.
Ash’s unraveling the connections that lead to a hedge fund and its Machiavellian owner is a complex but gripping process. The plot? To blow up a bank, throw the markets into unrest, and make a fortune. Along the way, Ash discovers the truth about his friend Jimmy, builds a strong bond with Jimmy’s dog Mingus, and learns how good people can be twisted to do bad things. In the end, good guys turn out to be bad guys, bad guys turn good, and the day is saved following a super-scary chase scene.
The Drifter is a classic thriller, and Petrie worked hard to lift it a bit above through character complexity. He has varying success with that – the emphasis on the psychic impact of combat can be seen as exploitative, and the upright nurse, crime lord with a sensitive side, callous hedge fund owner, and crooked cop are pretty formulaic. But it all hangs together quite well and the Ash character is compelling, so all told, it’s a very strong debut and I look forward to more from Petrie.
It’s a tough call where to place it on the rankings. Each of the four books are so different, with Under the Harrow falling in suspense, Dodgers in literary, IQ detective and Drifter thriller. After careful consideration, I’m going to place it #2. As a sheer page-turner, it’s a good one, but not quite up to IQ. But I have to say, I’d recommend all four of these books – this is a great crop of debut novels and I’m eager to see how the last two stack up!
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Posted in Commentary, Edgar, Review
Tagged Best First Novel, Edgar, Jack Reacher, Lee Child, MWA, Nick Petrie, rank, Review, The Drifter