Rock & Roll Rip-Off
A Jason Duffy Mystery
R. J. McDonnell
Review: Former band musician Jason Duffy, now a private investigator in San Diego, looks into the theft of a multi-million dollar collection of rock-and-roll memorabilia in Rock & Roll Rip-Off, the second mystery in this series by R. J. McDonnell.
Max Varner is a career studio keyboard musician who provides a professional presence, and often sage advice, to new bands. During his twenty-some-odd years of working with groups, he has amassed a large, unique collection of souvenirs. "While most people collect autographs and autographed guitars," he tells Jason, "I collect off-beat stuff like chipped symbols, old wah-wah pedals, stage-worn costumes, hair extensions, and things like that." But that collection, recently appraised for $2.7 million, has now been stolen. Due to the uniqueness of the items, which are likely to be impossible to fence locally, Max fears the collection will be shipped to Mexico and broken into small lots, to be sold overseas. He hires Duffy to prevent that from happening. Duffy's task seems overwhelming: the suspect list includes over 200 guests that recently attended a party at Max's house. But soon after he begins his investigation, he discovers that some serious men with some serious weapons are covering up more than just a simple theft.
Rock & Roll Rip-Off is written as a semi-inverted whodunit, with the crime taking place -- and the identities of the culprits given -- during the first six (very short) chapters, though not everything is known to the reader. Subsequently, Duffy's participation is more along the lines of a procedural, though there are passages within some chapters from the perspective of the thieves. This approach doesn't work quite as well as it should, especially since it's clear early on that the author intends to unveil a twist in the end. Still, the plot is well considered and developed, and Jason Duffy an appealing PI. A musician himself, the author clearly knows the world in which he sets his mysteries, providing an insider look at not only what the public sees on stage, but also what it takes behind-the-scenes to get it there. Finally, the rocky relationship Duffy has with his father, introduced in the first book of the series, takes a step forward here ... a nice touch.
Acknowledgment: R. J. McDonnell provided a copy of Rock & Roll Rip-Off for this review.
Review Copyright © 2010 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved
Selected reviews of other mysteries by this author …
Rock & Roll Homicide
Killeena Publishing (Hardcover), June 2008
ISBN-13: 9780981491417; ISBN-10: 0981491413
The Concert Killer
Killeena Publishing (Trade Paperback), August 2011
ISBN-13: 9780981491455; ISBN-10: 0981491456
Location(s) referenced in Rock & Roll Rip-Off: San Diego, California
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Rock & Roll Rip-Off by R. J. McDonnell
Publisher: Killeena Publishing
Format: Hardcover
ISBN-10: 0-9814914-2-1
ISBN-13: 978-0-9814914-2-4
Publication Date: April 2010
List Price: $25.95
Synopsis (from the publisher): Jason Duffy thought he had accepted a routine burglary case when a career studio musician hired him to recover a memorabilia collection featuring unusual treasures from some of the top performers in the music industry. But Jason quickly finds himself at the top of a hit list that has nothing to do with The Top 40 and everything to do with a table for one at the San Diego Coroner's Office.
While the facts of the case point to an emo band that the victim was helping at the time of the theft, the lethal force that Jason encounters in his investigation feels more like death metal. He finds himself imperiled by a hitman known as The Heartbreaker, due to his signature of shooting his victims through the heart at close range. With danger also threatening his staff and girlfriend, Jason must continue to mend fences with his retired police detective father, in spite of a recent riff that caused a setback to their relationship.
Everyone thought The Tactile Tattoo was a can't miss band. The pre-release buzz for their first CD was tremendous. But a bad review from a key industry critic, who didn't care for their lyrics, left the album stillborn at record stores across the country. The group soon learned that second chances in the current state of the music business are practically nonexistent. One band member discovered that money talks in an industry strapped for cash, and a bribe was entirely possible. However, funding that bribe meant getting involved with all of the wrong people.
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