The Last Gig
A Novel
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- $2.99
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- $2.99
Publisher Description
Norman Green, critically acclaimed author of four crime novels, debuts a fresh, edgy character in the streetwise Alessandra Martillo, a female take on the P.I.s of yesteryear. Tough as nails and sometimes heartless, smart and altogether too brave for her own good, Al is one of the most interesting lead characters to hit crime fiction in years.
A teenage runaway from the Brownsville projects, Alessandra Martillo lived with an indifferent aunt who had taken her in when her mother killed herself, and later, after more than a year on the streets, a caring uncle found her, took her in, and showed her she had a chance. That was many years ago, and now Alessandra’s all grown up, working for a sleazy P.I., repossessing cars, and trolling for waitstaff on the take. The cases aren’t glamorous, or interesting, but the work pays the bills. And she’s good at it—if there’s one thing she’s learned since leaving the streets, it’s how to take care of herself around life’s shadier elements.
When an Irish mobster named Daniel “Mickey” Caughlan thinks someone on the inside of his shipping operation is trying to set him up for a fall, it’s Al he wants on the job. She’s to find the traitor and report back. But just a little digging shows it’s more complicated than a simple turncoat inside the family; Al’s barely started on the case when she runs into a few tough guys trying to warn her away. Fools. As if a little confrontation wouldn’t make her even more determined.
Gritty and unputdownable, this is perfect for fans of James Lee Burke and Robert Crais.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
While there's nothing particularly original about Alessandra "Al" Martillo, Green's new hard-boiled PI, this series debut suggests she may have a long fictional life ahead of her. Al works as the assistant to Marty Stiles, a New York City ex-cop turned PI, who does a fair amount of repo work. The ante gets upped for both of them when Daniel "Mickey" Caughlan, a leading Irish mobster, hires Stiles to find out who's using his trucking company to move drugs. Al soon learns that another mystery surrounds the death of Caughlan's 20-year-old son, ostensibly from an overdose, just six months earlier. Green (Way Past Legal) convincingly conveys the city's underbelly and keeps the action moving through various subplots, including a search for a sex tape that could destroy a pop diva's reputation. Some may quibble that the indestructible Al is a bit too larger-than-life, but she's well-rounded enough to help readers suspend disbelief at her surviving numerous violent encounters.