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RUSTY NAIL
by J. A. Konrath
Hyperion, July 2006
304 pages
$23.95
ISBN: 140130088X


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

JA Konrath is at it again. In this third book in the Lt Jacqueline Daniels series, Konrath spins a yarn full of humor and gore -- unlikely page mates. But Konrath melds the two tones in a unique way, creating a human story that touches on all the horrors in life.

Jack faces an old nemesis. She's receiving tapes of murders -- the same kind of murders she faced in the case of the now solved Gingerbread Man. This time, she knows who the victims are and dives in headfirst, endangering herself, her partner, and the Chicago police department as she tries to get to the bottom of it.

This book sees Jack in a different light. Her job is truly on the line, her mother is gravely ill, her lover has left. She's in danger of losing everything, including herself. There is a new sense of vulnerability, an openness that Konrath hasn't used before, that gives RUSTY NAIL a real sense of humanity. It is deeper than the previous books, a little more sensitive.

Konrath's style isn't for everyone. Coupling humor, laugh out-loud in places humor, with what is basically a disgusting set of murders is sometimes too incongruous to manage. I've enjoyed his books in the past, and I enjoyed this one, but I was a bit disappointed in Jack's actions. I turned the other cheek to the gross-out factor, tried to stick with the openness of the story. But Jack doesn't seem to like being that way -- it tends to muck up her common sense. She makes some truly boneheaded moves in this book, and it ruined the story for me.

Strange, to love certain aspects of a book yet have a difficult time buying in to many parts of the story. But RUSTY NAIL is well worth a read. In the future, I hope Konrath continues to make his characters all too human, because that new touch to the story really worked.

Reviewed by J. T. Ellison, August 2006

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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