Saturday, February 16, 2008

Crosshairs (Lee Henry Oswald) by Harry Hunsicker

Lee Henry Oswald is trying to make an honest living, working in a bar doing his best to stay away from the PI / fixer stuff that got him in trouble just one too many times. You can't keep a good shamus down however, so finally he's convinced to search for the daughter of an old Desert Storm buddy and to find out who is bothering medical reseacher Anita Nazari. While he investigates he has several violent run-ins with armed thugs as well as The Professor, a mysterious killer who has ties with Desert Storm and chemical warfare. Aiding Oswald are group of Travelers (kind of Irish gypsies) and his old partner Nolan, now sporting a boob-job and a wedding ring. He uncovers a conspiracy involving the government as well as the pharmaceutical industry.
As in his previous novel Hunsicker's prose is tight and easy to read. The pacing is relentless and basically there's never a dull moment. These elements made this a great read to me but I can imagine it will put off people who like the more introspective, lyrical prose of James Lee Burke or the bigger plots of Michael Connelly.

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