Lost Tomorrows (Rick Cahill) by Matt Coyle

I have read all books in this series and the ride over to this one has been great. The series started with PI Rick Cahill being suspected of killing his wife and him quitting the force as a result. Now he gets the chance to avenge her death.
When his former partner gets killed in a hit and run he's hired by her sister who suspects her death might not have been an accident. This has him investigating his own wife's death again and forces him to discover if he is willing to act as judge, jury and executioner.
As always Matt Coyle writes a well-paced crime novel that has room for mystery, action but also good characterization. Rick Cahill is a true anti-hero, always having to choose between right and wrong like my own Noah Milano. Always an inspiring read.

Wrong Light (Rick Cahill) by Matt Coyle

Some PI's (like my own Noah Milano) try to find redemption. Some PI's (like Dana King's Nick Forte) just get darker. Rick Cahill is one of the latter as well.
When sexy-voiced radio personality Naomi is stalked the radio station hires Rick Cahill to protect her and locate the stalker. Then a girl is abducted and Rick has to get involved with that while trying to work out his issues with the Russian mob he got into in the earlier books.
The several plot threads come together nicely and Rick keeps growing as a character. He becomes more hardboiled and darker as we near the exciting climax.
Nice pacing, good prose, good characters in a tight and traditional PI story every fan of the genre will enjoy.

Blood Truth (Rick Cahill) by Matt Coyle

Few so traditional PI series are as succesful currently as the Rick Cahill series. Matt Coyle really knows his stuff and manages to tell a great PI story without going out of his way to avoid the familiar tropes. In this latest novel in the series Rick encounters his most personal cases ever. Not only is he asked by his ex-wife to find out if her new husband is cheating on her, he also investigates why his dad was thrown out of the police force.
Trying to deal with his past and upbringing, clashing with the cops and trying to be a friend to a female PI Rick has a lot of challenges thrown on his path.
It's an emotional ride with just the right amount of action and mystery thrown in, written in clear and well-paced prose.

Dark Fissures (Rick Cahill) by Matt Coyle

Matt Coyle's first two novels in this series were pretty well-received, and I enjoyed them a lot as well. The third one is good follow-up to those two, still having a bit different and a bit more action-packed feel than the first one. That action-packed feel comes from the fact the case Rick Cahill takes on in this one involves Navy SEALS.
Hired by country singer Brianna to find out if her husband's suicide wasn't really a murder he tangles with both Navy SEALS and the local cops.
Falling for the lady the case starts to get personal and Cahill has to prove just how tough he is.
Cahill is not the most unique or original character but he is engaging and feels real. The same goes for the plot. There's parts we've read before but Coyle ties it all together in such an enjoyable tale it is very satifsying.
Pretty fast-paced, well narrated but absolutely true to the legacy Raymond Chandler left this is the stuff dreams are made of if you're a PI fan.

Night Tremors (Rick Cahill) by Matt Coyle

Every time I seem to think I am tiring of the PI genre maybe another novel like this one pops up and affirms my love of the genre.
I loved the first one in this series so I was excited to read this one and it didn't disappoint. In fact, I loved it even more than the first book. The story flows better and faster, the prose is even tighter and the mystery more interesting.
Haunted by the memories of the man he killed and the death of his wife Rick Cahill now works as a PI for a larger firm, snapping pictures of cheating husbands and wives. When a lawyer (great, fun character) asks him to prove a young man did not murder his family he gets involved with a dangerous group of bikers.
As he investigates the case gets more and more personal and in the end Cahill is forced to face his demons and embrace his dark side. The ending might really surprise you and had me anxiously awaiting book 3.
This is shaping up to be one of my favorite new series.

Yesterday's Echo (Rick Cahill) by Matt Coyle

This one has all the things a PI novel should have, in a timeless way. The premise is not original: a cop with a dark past (his wife was murdered and he was accused of this) retires and hides in a smaller city where a beautiful woman gets him involved with murder and blackmail, coming into conflict with the local cops. Matt Coyle is such a great writer this story is still one to remember. His pacing is excellent, the story never gets dull. He writes crisp prose, never writing a word too many. His discriptions are spot on, fight scenes move like lightning.
Rick Cahill, the protagonist starts out working in a restaurant and ends up a PI in the last chapter, so he will be sure to return. I already look forward to meeting him again and to learn more about who / why his wife was murdered.

Q & A with Matt Coyle

Matt Coyle is one of the hottest new crime writers so I just had to interview him...

Q: What makes Rick Cahill different from other hardboiled characters?
      I think Rick is a bit more introspective than other hardbolied protagonists and carries around more guilt than most. He also doubts himself more than other hardboiled characters.

Q: What inspired the character?
     I think all first novels are a bit autobiographical, particularly ones written in first person, so there's a bit of me in Rick. However, the more drafts I wrote, the less of me was left in him. I really started to get the character when I came up with a line that ended up being the opening sentence to the book:
The first time I saw her, she made me remember and she made me forget.
This line made me ask questions about Rick that I had to answer to really know him.
What had been so bad in his life that he desperately needed to forget? And what good had been covered up by the bad that he desperately wanted to remember. Once I answered these questions, Rick's back story filled in for me and I had my protagonist.

Q: What are your thoughts on the whole eBook revolution?
     I think the eBook revolution is good for both writers and readers. It gives authors another avenue to reach readers and readers greater diversity for reading content. I do think that traditional publishing is still a way for readers to know that the book they buy has gone through a vetting process and several gatekeepers before it hit the market. This helps the author gain trust from the reader that will be rewarded should he or she chose to self-publish in the future.
     The eBook revolution has hurt brick and mortar booksellers and that is unfortunate. However, a lot of people, myself included, will always want to go into bookstores and buy printed books. Nothing can quite replace the feel of a cracking open a new book in your hands. Smart booksellers are finding ways to compete with eBooks through customer service, loyalty discounts, having their own online presence, and by holding book signings in their stores. Book signings are invaluable for new authors as it gives them an opportunity to interact personally with readers and build a fan base.

Q: What's next for you and Rick? Will he return?
     I am currently writing the next Rick Cahill crime novel that I hope will be out in 2014. Rick's life has changed and he now has a career more in keeping with his law enforcement roots.

Q: How do you promote your work?
     I've gotten a lot of help from my publisher, Oceanview Publishing, in promoting Yesterday's Echo. They sent out over 100 ARCs (advance reader copies) to booksellers and reviewers. That has really helped me garner a lot of reviews which is very helpful in getting the word out about my book. I've had some online interviews as well as one in a local newspaper. I hired a publicist in the Los Angeles who got me an interview with Connie Martinson on Talking Books. We also went around to bookstores and gave away copies to employees who were the top mystery fans. I'm currently on a self-funded book tour and I'm going to the California Crime Writers Conference and Bouchercon.

Q: What other genres besides crime do you like?
     I mainly stick to crime fiction and some non-fiction about culture and politics and some true crime.

Q: What's your idea about the psychotic sidekick in PI novels like Hawk and Joe Pike?
     I'm a huge Robert Crais fan so, of course, I like Joe Pike. I don't see him as psychotic because I don't think he commits violence for self-gratification. I think he has a set of principles he lives by and, to uphold them, he sometimes has to commit violence on people who cannot be stopped any other way.

      Rick Cahill doesn't have a sidekick. I like to keep him isolated and unable to rely on anyone else when it comes to violence. This makes him wrestle with the justifications of his actions which plays a prominent role in the book I'm now writing.

Q: In the last century we've seen new waves of PI writers, first influenced by Hammett, then Chandler, Macdonald, Parker, later Lehane. Who do you think will influence the coming generation?
     I think Robert Crais, who I just mentioned, will influence the coming generation as he has for some of us late-bloomers to this generation. As you mentioned, Dennis Lehane is also a good choice. In a broader sense of crime fiction, you'd have to include T. Jeffereson

Parker and Michael Connelly, as well as an under-recognized auther, C.J. Box.

Q: Why do you write in this genre?
     I've read crime fiction all my life. It is what I love. When I think about a story, there is a crime involved. Crime allows you to examine varous levels of society merely by having your protagonist follow a clue. I think some of the best American writing has been done in the crime genre.