Green Monster
A
Sam Skarda Mystery
Rick
Shefchik
Poisoned Pen Press (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 1-59058-524-0 (1590585240)
ISBN-13: 978-1-59058-524-5 (9781590585245)
Publication Date: September 2008
List Price: $24.95
Synopsis (from
the publisher): After a second World Championship in four years, the
Boston Red Sox have finally buried the Curse of the
Bambino—or have they? Sox owner Louis Kenwood receives an
extortion note signed “Babe Ruth” claiming that the
2004 World Series was fixed—and demanding $50 million to keep
the information from getting to the press and the
Commissioner’s office.
If the allegation of a fix becomes public, Kenwood fears irreparable
damage to the value of his franchise and to his legacy as
“Lucky Louie,” the man who finally brought a
championship to Boston after 86 years. Thus, the Red Sox turn to
private detective Sam Skarda to find out who’s behind the
extortion plot.
Kenwood insists that his beautiful executive assistant Heather Canby
accompany—and monitor—Sam on every step of his
investigation. Unsure whom he can trust, Sam follows the clues to the
Los Angeles underworld and then to the slums of Venezuela. Can he
assemble all of the pieces to this puzzle before more lives are lost
and scandal blasts the Red Sox Nation?
Review:
Private investigator Sam Skarda is hired by the owner of the Boston Red
Sox to track down and stop an extortionist in Green Monster, the second mystery
in this series by Rick Shefchik.
For Lou Kenwood, the self-made billionaire owner of the Red Sox, life
is good. His beloved team has now won two World Series under his
leadership and he's revered by people of Boston. But someone wants to
take that all away, threatening to go public in 5 days with evidence
that the 2004 World Series was fixed. The written note was short and to
the point: pay $50 million or be exposed. It was signed "Babe
Ruth". Fearing publicity and loath to involve the police, Kenwood uses his connections to
hire Sam Skarda, a former police officer working as a private
investigator in Minneapolis, who he trusts can investigate the case
without bringing any attention to it. Skarda quickly locates some of
those involved in the scheme, but realizes time may run out before he
can put a name to "Babe Ruth" and prevent a scandal from rocking the sports
world.
Fans of baseball novels will undoubtedly be thrilled with Green Monster
and
overlook the flaws that make this mystery no better than average. The
plot itself is rather disjointed and tends to be inconsistent in terms
of its credibility. There are long stretches on the history of baseball
(especially
some of its more disreputable periods) that may appeal to sports
enthusiasts, but are likely to be skimmed over by most
readers. Skarda's relationship with Kenwood's assistant,
Heather Canby, is prurient to say the very least. Sex may add color and
interest
for some to the story but it accomplishes little in the way of
advancing the plot here. The subplot set in Venezuela is also a
distraction and is not only unnecessary but seems to exist merely
as transitional filler. But probably the most serious flaw
here is that Green
Monster is set up as a whodunit-style mystery yet the
identity of "Babe Ruth" is fairly obvious from early on in the story.
Red herrings and alternate suspects are eventually proffered, but too
late to generate any real suspense.
A more tightly-constructed plot might have helped Shefchik pull off the
"sports noir"-type novel he seems to have attempted. To use a baseball
metaphor, he didn't strike out with Green Monster, but
did manage to advance the runner. Maybe the third inning of the series will be more successful.
Special thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for providing an ARC of Green Monster for this review.
Review Copyright © 2008 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.
Mysteries in this series ...
Amen
Corner
Poisoned Pen Press (Hardcover), March 2007
ISBN-10: 1-59058-411-2 (1590584112)
ISBN-13: 978-1-59058-411-8 (9781590584118)
Green
Monster
Poisoned Pen Press (Hardcover), September 2008
ISBN-10: 1-59058-524-0 (1590585240)
ISBN-13: 978-1-59058-524-5 (1590585245)
Omnimystery keywords for Green Monster ...
Location(s) referenced: Boston, Los
Angeles, Venezuela.
Sports referenced: Baseball.
