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The Dead Detective
"The Dead Detective is William Heffernan’s first novel in seven years, and wherever he’s been, he hasn’t forgotten how to write a good, gritty police procedural . . . This edgy police drama succeeds in capturing the hysteria the grips Tampa residents when a celebrity criminal . . . is found dead in a cyprus swamp with her throat cut and the word �Evil’ carved into her fore...more
Hardcover, 340 pages
Published
September 21st 2010
by Akashic Books
(first published August 13th 2010)
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I was attracted to this book by the title and the premise that Harry shared some bond with the dead through his own death. That angle and Harry’s feelings for his mother are quite well developed. The rest of the story is a pretty straight up and down police procedural focusing on the hunt for an unstable serial killer. The characterisation is quite nicely realised, but the characters are cookie-cut from the genre’s tropes - Harry has a reputation as being a brilliant detective, a tough guy with...more
Classic old-school detective work: I hadn’t realized how much I missed it until I read this new novel from Akashic Press. I’d heard Heffernan was good, and I’m sorry I waited so long to read one of his titles. Everything about this crime novel speaks to the traditional style of ‘whodunit’ mysteries: it has an ensemble cast of police characters (the high-level brass is a bit stereotypical), an intelligent criminal, and a string of intersecting events that complicate the search for the killer. Bes...more
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Heffernan's got a winner in Harry Doyle, the laconic detective who was murdered by his mother as a child. Yep, dead. But Harry's no ghost; he was brought back to life by the police officers who responded to a neighbor's call for help.
In Harry's debut, he has to solve the murder of a child-molesting teacher who's free on parole. While the murderer is fairly obvious, Heffernan keeps things lively with several potential suspects, a good noir tone, and likable characters interacting realistically. T...more
In Harry's debut, he has to solve the murder of a child-molesting teacher who's free on parole. While the murderer is fairly obvious, Heffernan keeps things lively with several potential suspects, a good noir tone, and likable characters interacting realistically. T...more
This book is seriously addictive. The plot was fascinating and although I figured out 'whodunnit' it was still a good read. I loved the fullness of the characters and the sheer amount of them. I loved the gruesome bits and the multiple sub-plots and story lines. It was really very good. I loved and hated Vicky in equal measure. I thought Jeanie was so sweet and wished she was in it as a more centeral character. I loved the character of Lucy Santos, Harry's religious fanatic mother. the tensions...more
This was a very good police procedural, nicely plotted (except I suspected "who done it" in the beginning). The twist here is Harry Doyle is called the "dead detective" because is mother murdered him and his younger brother when they were boys. He was brought back to life by the cops, but his brother died. His mother is still in prison for these crimes, and one of the sub-plots is Harry's determination that she should stay there. He also claims that dead bodies "talk" to him about their killers....more
Heffernan's latest venture is a police procedural set in Tarpon Springs, FL. The new character Harry Doyle is well written, though my fear is that a series character, from Heffernan, might not be my cup of tea. I've only read one of his other works where a series character existed and while it was fine, I felt like books like A Time Gone By and Beulah Hill were stronger stories.
I realize it's not fair to compare The Dead Detective to those other books. It's just a matter of preference for me. R...more
I realize it's not fair to compare The Dead Detective to those other books. It's just a matter of preference for me. R...more
PROTAGONIST: Harry Boyle, homicide detective
SETTING: Florida
SERIES: First in a new series?
RATING: 3.5
WHY: When Harry Boyle was 10, he and his younger brother were murdered by their religious zealot murder. Rescue workers are able to resuscitate Harry, but not Jimmy. Now he is a homicide detective, referred to by his colleagues as "the dead detective". They think he can talk to the dead. That's not true, but he is able to intuit what they felt before they died. A standard police procedural with a...more
SETTING: Florida
SERIES: First in a new series?
RATING: 3.5
WHY: When Harry Boyle was 10, he and his younger brother were murdered by their religious zealot murder. Rescue workers are able to resuscitate Harry, but not Jimmy. Now he is a homicide detective, referred to by his colleagues as "the dead detective". They think he can talk to the dead. That's not true, but he is able to intuit what they felt before they died. A standard police procedural with a...more
I wanted to like this book. The synopsis, the beautiful cover, the main character, the mystery. It all sounded amazing!
Then I read it and I don't know what happened. I did like the story, but the book had three major flaws.
The characters:
Very one dimensional and very cliched. It's almost like every stereotypical cop had to be in this novel.
The dialogue:
Never felt real. I would never hear cops speak like this. Ever. Thanks to CSI, more people are aware of the forensics team, but most cops don't...more
Then I read it and I don't know what happened. I did like the story, but the book had three major flaws.
The characters:
Very one dimensional and very cliched. It's almost like every stereotypical cop had to be in this novel.
The dialogue:
Never felt real. I would never hear cops speak like this. Ever. Thanks to CSI, more people are aware of the forensics team, but most cops don't...more
This is a super awesome police procedural / mystery. The crime is heinous and worthy of a Law & Order episode without being over-the-top raunchy. The "dead detective's" intuition about the crime is believable and stays well away from the Sylvia Browne zone (as I like to call it). There's a good balance between the detective's hang-ups and the possible hang-ups of the murderer. There's a great cast of minor characters too - including Rubio Marti, the detective's informant.
This was a good summer read. I bought into the main detective character enough to care about him and believe in him, but the book loses points with me because I knew who the murderer was before our protangonist did - by at least 150 pages! He should have been checking out this guy way before it slapped him right in the face! Still, good storytelling and goog job of setting up the next book. I'll definately be looking for it soon!
He's the dead detective for two reasons. One, he nearly died as a child when his mother tried to kill both him and his brother. He survived, the brother didn't, and the crazy mom went to jail. Two, he has an intuitive ability to look into the eyes of dead people to determine their last emotions.
I'd have rated this higher, but I was able to figure out waaaay too early whodunit.
I'd have rated this higher, but I was able to figure out waaaay too early whodunit.
First Heffernan title I've read, but it won't be the last. At the age of 10, Harry Doyle and his younger brother were murdered by their religious fanatic mother. Rescue workers were able to resuscitate Harry, now a Florida homicide detective, whose childhood experience ieft him with a "gift." Creepy ending hints at more to come...I hope.
This was a quick, fun read about a detective trying to identify the murderer of a child molester in Tampa. Figuring out who did it was way too easy which reduced the suspense and fun in puzzling out how/why it happened. But, I enjoyed the detective's voice and the parallel story of his mother's parole hearing.
It was fun to read about locations in Pinellas County - why did he change Fred Howard Park to Frank Howard Park, though? I'm just not that into murder and mayhem anymore, so I wasn't super enthused. There were lots of red herrings!
A good book with an interesting main character. The killer's identity became evident before I was half through, but the characters and story were interesting enough that I still was curious to see what all would be revealed. I'd definitely be interested in reading a sequel.
I really liked this book! Like a creepy twist with the detective... Very good touch!
Could NOT get into this book. I gave it every benefit, but it just couldn't hold my attention. There are too many other books out there to waste my time with one that can't hold my attention.
Well put together, even though I think I had the murderer figured out- I can't be sure because hindsight is always 20/20. Good, honest, human characters and a lot of potential for a series. Creepy mother, she gave me major heebie jeebies.
Knew who the killer was by page 40, no twists for the next 280.
Good. Well done although I figured out "whodunnit" early in the book.
Apr 18, 2011
Judith Guyot
added it
Interesting and straight forward. Not a complicated plot.
Good for a procedural.
Great light crime novel
May 23, 2013
Holly
marked it as to-read
May 09, 2013
Nick Reynolds
marked it as to-read
Apr 09, 2013
Bill
added it
Mar 04, 2013
Luciane
marked it as to-read
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