Mahu Surfer

MAHU SURFER, the second book Neil Plakcy's Mahu Investigations mystery series, sends gay Honolulu homicide detective Kimo Kanapa'aka back to his surfing past. His new boss asks the former competitive surfer to go undercover on Oahu's North Shore to find the killer of three surfers. The catch: he can't tell any of his family or friends that he has returned to the force, causing him to lie, when he has just come out of the closet and begun to tell the truth about his life.

In his return to the North Shore, Kimo discovers trouble in paradise, from an epidemic rise in the use of crystal meth to increasing pressure on real estate prices. He also rekindles an uneasy friendship with a man whose sexual assault drove him into the police academy, and further into the closet, six years earlier. Readers will enjoy an exotic locale, plenty of aloha spirit and a dash of surf culture, as well as a slam-bang ending.

Finalist for the Lambda Literary Award for best gay mystery. Perfect for fans of Joseph Hansen, Michael Nava, and John Morgan Wilson.

What the critics have said about the Mahu Investigations:

"Plakcy keeps the waves of suspense crashing!"               In LA Magazine

"Hits all the right notes as a mystery."                              Mystery Book News

"Kimo brings needed diversity to the genre, and the author handles the island setting well."                                                           Honolulu Star-Bulletin

"Spotless pace, intriguing plots twists, and an earnest depiction of challenges faced by people transitioning out of the closet."              Honolulu Advertiser

"Recommended to a wide audience."                                  Reviewing the Evidenc