ABOUT THE BOOK
For Dash Fuller, Hollywood’s underbelly is home. He’s spent years making the film industry’s worst secrets disappear, and it’s left him a cynical burnout with a taste for bourbon and self-loathing.
But when a young woman comes to him with a peculiar quest, Dash sees a chance at redemption. Madeline Ironwood is the daughter of Ken Ironwood, a notorious smuggler and murderer who disappeared 20 years ago. Ken’s skeleton has just been discovered in a barrel at the bottom of a dried-up lake, and Madeline wants to know who killed him.
Dash agrees to help, and as this desperate daughter and jaded cynic claw their way through a world of sun-bleached secrets, crooked cops, and Hollywood thugs, they soon uncover a conspiracy involving some of LA’s most powerful people.
MY REVIEW
When Mr. Kolakowski asked me to review his gritty noir mystery, I seized it at once. And, believe me, I was not disappointed. From the seedy parts of Hollywood to the fire-torn wine country, it’s a race against time when a former fixer and bagman and his new young client are thrown into a quagmire of murder and betrayal.
Dash Fuller is a former Hollywood clean-up man turned struggling stand-up comic trying (and failing) to leave his tumultuous past behind. When Dash’s old boss Manny offers Dash a job that dredges up memories of a botched gig that sent him running from that life, he finds himself pulled back in, convinced it’ll be the last time. But we all know how that goes.
The plot thickens when Dash is contacted by the daughter of Ken Ironwood, a man who has been MIA for decades and whose body has just been discovered. As they work together to piece together what really happened, it escalates into a cat-and-mouse game, one that had me laughing out loud one moment and on the edge of my seat the next. And let me tell you, the ending? Wow. It was a masterpiece with all of the chaotic loose ends tied up as I sat there wondering what the hell just happened.
Nick Kolakawski is a very fine writer, one of those authors equipped with the ability to hook the reader in just a few sentences and keep them nailed until the very last word. I literally could see this book on the big screen. It’s that good!
If you love crime fiction and even if you don’t read it much, give this superb novel a try! You will be thrown into a whirlwind of humor, suspense, and unexpected twists. One of my favorite books this year.
Thank you so much to Nick for giving me the opportunity to read this book with no expectation of a positive review.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Nick Kolakowski is the author of several crime novels, including “Where the Bones Lie” and “Payback is Forever.” His work has been nominated for the Anthony and Derringer awards, and his short story “Scorpions” appeared in The Best Mystery and Suspense 2024. His short fiction has appeared in numerous anthologies and magazines, including Mystery Weekly, Shotgun Honey, Rock and a Hard Place Press, and more.
Follow Nick on his website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Bluesky.
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