Say Goodbye
A
Gary Kemmerman Mystery
E.
J.
Rand
Deadly Ink Press (Trade Paperback)
ISBN-10: 0-9787442-1-7 (0978744217)
ISBN-13: 978-0-9787442-1-2 (9780978744212)
Publication Date: January 2008
List Price: $12.95
Synopsis (from the publisher): At a neighbor's request, Gary Kemmerman reluctantly agrees to investigate her husband's death. Enter Becca, the only witness to the fatal car crash. Add in a killer humming a Disney tune and an unexpected attraction between Gary and Becca. Having lost his wife to cancer the year before, will Gary risk loving and perhaps losing again? Will he be able to say goodbye?
Review:
E. J. Rand introduces retired (or maybe not) crisis consultant Gary
Kemmerman in Say Goodbye,
an overly complex romantic mystery that isn't likely to satisfy fans of
either genre.
When a neighbor's automobile accident appears to be anything but
accidental, Kemmerman is asked by the dead man's wife to investigate.
She claims he told her his life was in danger, that he was in a "don't
shoot the messenger" situation at work, a company involved in
international finance. And now he's dead. There was a witness to the
accident who supports the view that he was murdered, but the police
don't seem to take her account that seriously. Soon Kemmerman is pulled
into a complex investigation involving more than just his neighbor's
death and one that jeopardizes the lives of everyone involved.
Say Goodbye
is very slow going at first. Part of the problem is that there is
little foundation for what happens in the first few chapters. In
addition, relationships between the characters, at least initially, are
hard to ascertain. And there are a lot of characters. Subtitled "a
reluctant sleuth mystery" yet Kemmerman seems anything but a reluctant
sleuth. He seems in charge of everything except, perhaps, his personal
life. That's where the romantic element comes in. The witness to the
accident, Natalie Strassberg (who prefers to be called "Becca"), was
driving behind the victim when his car went off the bridge. Kemmerman,
a recent widower, is immediately attracted to her and pursues her with
almost the same determination as he does solving the case. It's all a
bit forced and in an odd way somewhat distasteful.
The case itself is hardly suspenseful as the perpetrators of the
various crimes (there's murder, arson, embezzlement,
blackmail, fraud, and probably a half dozen other felonies or
misdemeanors committed here) are known to the reader. An improbable and
furiously paced sequence of events brings everyone together in the end.
Ironically, in the last few chapters the narrative seems to have more
depth and is more thought out and better written, but by this time it's
too late to capture the imagination or interest of most readers.
According to the author's website, Rand has plotted out the next few
titles in the series after Say
Goodbye. There's potential here for future books but the
plots need to be much simpler with fewer crimes and characters.
Special thanks to Breakthrough Promotions for providing a copy of Say Goodbye for this review.
Review Copyright © 2008 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.
Mysteries in this series ...
Say Goodbye
Deadly Ink Press (Trade Paperback), January 2008
ISBN-10: 0-9787442-1-7 (0978744217)
ISBN-13: 978-0-9787442-1-2 (9780978744212)
Omnimystery keywords for Say Goodbye ...
Location(s) referenced: New Jersey.