Whiskey Island: A Milan Jacovich Mystery (Milan Jacovich Mysteries)
*Starred Review* Cleveland private investigator Milan Jacovich can’t be too choosy about his clients in a tough economy. Plus it will be a chance to season his new associate, Kevin “K.O.” O’Bannion. The client is Cleveland city councilman Bert Loftus, who is squirming under 31 federal indictments. Through the years, Loftus has used his position as a cash cow, peddling his influence for everything from car repairs to bundles of cash to home remodeling. The indictments are one thing, but now someone wants him dead. He needs Milan and K.O. to find out who. Milan and K.O. soon learn that there is a group of Cleveland landlords who have curried Loftus’ favors but now may be turning on their benefactor. After a paid escort is found dead near the Cleveland Zoo, and tapes are found in her upscale high-rise apartment, Milan and K.O. begin to unravel a murderous trail of government corruption, payoffs, and sexual hijinks. The sixteenth Jacovich may be the best in an always-solid series. The addition of O’Bannion and a shifting narrative point-of-view elevate the series to the premier level of ongoing detective fiction. A significant leap forward for Roberts and Jacovich. --Wes Lukowsky