Eye Contact

Mark Manning Mystery #2

by Michael Craft

Reporter Mark Manning searches for a killer and stumbles upon a stunning conspiracy.

Chicago Journal reporter Mark Manning has been called in to replace a colleague on a big story. Famed Swiss astrophysicist Pavo Zarnik has just stunned the science world with his announcement that he’s discovered a tenth planet in our solar system. Manning is skeptical of Zarnik’s claims and believes he’s a fraud. His suspicions grow when his fellow reporter—award-winning journalist Clifford Nolan—turns up dead, his laptop missing.

Now, Manning is covering two breaking stories and coping with the not-entirely-unwanted advances of twenty-something reporter David Bosch. In a committed relationship with architect Neil Waite, Manning is determined to resist temptation. But he soon has bigger things to worry about. On the edge of a far-reaching political conspiracy, Manning matches wits with a killer whose agenda is about to become chillingly clear.

Eye Contact is the second book in Michael Craft’s Mark Manning series, which also includes Flight Dreams and Body Language.

Genres: Mystery, LGBT, Fiction, M M Romance, Gay, Gay Fiction, Mystery Thriller

342 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 1, 1998

About the author

Michael Craft is the author of 20 published novels, four of which have been honored as finalists for Lambda Literary Awards. The first installment of his Dante & Jazz series, "Desert Getaway," was a 2023 MWA Edgars nominee for the Lilian Jackson Braun Award. The second installment, "Desert Deadline," was a Gold Winner of the IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award, as was his 2019 mystery, "ChoirMaster." In addition, his prize-winning short fiction has appeared in British as well as American literary journals. Craft grew up in Illinois and spent his middle years in Wisconsin, which inspired the fictitious small-town setting of Dumont, used in many of his earlier books. He holds an MFA in creative writing from Antioch University, Los Angeles, and now lives in Rancho Mirage, California, near Palm Springs, the setting of his current Dante & Jazz mystery series. In 2017, Michael Craft's professional archives were acquired by the Special Collections Department of the Rivera Library at the University of California, Riverside. Visit the author's website at www.michaelcraft.com.

Reviews

[Ulysses Dietz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eye Contact (Mark Manning #2)

By Michael Craft

Four stars


How fun it is to read books written back in 2000…how long ago that feels.

The second of the Mark Manning books, “Eye Contact,” takes place two years after Mark Manning has embraced his new gay self and has begun living with the younger architect, Neil, whose design genius has transformed Manning’s raw loft into a dazzling modern space. Neil has also transformed it into their home, symbolic of what they have become to each other and to the larger world.

What’s most important about this second book is that Mark Manning himself is a much happier, more likeable person than he was in book one, “Flight Dreams.” Some of this might simply be the way Craft writes about him, but I’d like to think that having finally recognized who he truly is, Manning is finally happy; and being happy, is able to just be warmer, gentler and more generous of heart.

Of course there’s a mystery here, in fact a brutal murder that seems to be linked to a major scientific discovery; but is also somehow tied up in a massive millennial celebration taking place in Chicago in the summer of 2000. As Neil becomes ever more deeply involved with his pivotal role in the planning of this citywide cultural festival, Mark and his newspaper-reporter sidekick, David Bosch, try to unravel the knotted threads of an increasingly puzzling investigation.

Craft is very good at interweaving a diverse cast of characters and the various tangled plotlines into what ends up being a fairly harrowing suspense story. And there is also a bit of unexpected violence that left me gasping.

And in the midst of it all, Craft puts Neil and Mark’s connection under a lens, as he did in the first book. Now that Mark no longer tries to ignore his attraction to men, he finds himself grappling with attractions that could put his relationship with Neil at risk.

So we get murder, mayhem and a good dose of romantic philosophy. You can tell how Craft’s confidence as a narrator and a writer grew in this second book. It was more immediately engaging and had me far more involved with all the characters than the first chapter in this most interesting story.

This surely bodes well for book three.

[ElphaReads · Rating 2 out of 5]

Whenever I go to the Twin Cities Pride Parade and Festival, I always make a point to stop at the local GLBTA library's stand. I do this because they almost always have a large selection of books for sale that they weeded from their collection. This year I bought two books, and decided that I may as well pick up one of them for my next book on the list. The one I chose was EYE CONTACT by Michael Craft, and while I don't know what I was expecting, it wasn't really what I found. But that's not to say that all hope was lost. I just... wasn't as into it as I thought I would be.

It's a second book in a series (that might be part of the problem) about a reporter named Mark Manning. He's a great journalist living in Chicago with his lover Neil, who has built a very satisfactory (nay, HAPPY life) with his lover, and is asked by his boss to write a news story about an astrophysicist who thinks he has discovered a tenth planet. Manning's colleague, Cliff Nolan, as originally suppose to write the story, but Manning replaces him at the last minute. Along with this big story, he is given a new assistant, a hot young twenty four year old named David who seems to know what he wants, and that is Manning. And maybe Manning kind of wants David too. On top of all that, Nolan turns up murdered, which pulls both Manning and David into a conspiracy of galactic proportions, and tempts Manning in ways he's never known.

I think that my problem was less the mystery itself (it's a little ludicrous, but I could give in a pass up to a point), and more to do with how the 'tempted by the fruit of another' story was laid out. Mainly, that it had to happen at all. Now, I realize that that may not be a fair thing to say, since I jumped into the second book of the series and really don't know how Manning is characterized before this. They allude to it a bit, but overall I didn't SEE it outside of this context. And I really, really like Neil, his live in boyfriend. Neil was probably my favorite part of the story, really, because he was so sweet and just seemed so realistic. Maybe that was what got me all riled up, because I was more sympathetic to Neil than I was to Manning. I was more invested in the two of them being okay than I was in the actual main conflict. And while it did end in a way that I would consider 'good' for them, I wanted to see it get good again. I wanted to have Manning and Neil be okay AT THAT MOMENT so I could see them be okay. This is getting a little spoilery, and I'm sorry, but man.... I wanted to see them reconcile. I wanted to cry with that. I wanted to become a blubbering, weeping mess over their love because I was SO invested in Neil's, no, THEIR happiness. I WANTED TO SEE IT ALL.



So maybe two stars isn't really fair, because the story I wanted was never this story to begin with. Nor should it have been. It was about mystery and conspiracy, and angst had to take a backseat to intrigue and illicit forbidden sex. I read the back cover. It was all laid out for me.



I stand by my review, but EYE CONTACT, I assure you, it wasn't you. It was me.

[Alannah Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cannot put it down!


I'm rereading the Mark Manning series after reading Michael Craft's wonderful "Inside Dumont" and his AWESOME new series starring Abyssinian cat Mr. Puss (who may or may not talk, but definitely communicated with the humans of his choosing). This 2nd entry in the Mark Manning series proves that a series can get better and more intriguing. I love the premise of a 10th planet being discovered, and...well, I don't want to ruin things for anyone who hasn't read it. Just read it.

[Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

SlashReader: It's a fairly good book, mixes a lot of interesting things both religious and otherwise. It also deals with emotional things, it's a good mix of adventure, thrill and romance as well as other issues. The mystery is good I didn't figure it out for a while the point where everything starts to fall into place it's an interesting sock. But yeah... It's a good book, deals with various other issues as well as a good read.

[Oaken · Rating 2 out of 5]

I followed Imps sage advice and skipped big chunks of it to get through, on the promise that the next in the series starts picking the pace along. I like the characters but there are flaws to the writing - #1 being since the book is mainly from the POV of Mark Manning, why in God's Green Earth does he refer to himself as Manning? And yet, Neil, the partner, is referred to as Neil? Does he think of himself as Manning? And abrupt POV changes mid-scene are the #2 flaw.

[Nicolas Chinardet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mark Manning is a hot-shot investigative journalist; a contender for a Pulitzer-type prize. Or so we are repeatedly told. In fact Manning keeps his investigating, his "sleuthing", to a minimum and he only seems to stumble on evidence by chance, or has it volunteered to him by other charactered. As for piecing that evidence together, it's generally only when the truth is bludgeoning him on the head with a flashing sign that he finally puts two and two together.

The premise of the book, the mystery, is not quite believable and rather ludicrous. It is also fairly obvious from the start. Several of the conversations and social situations don't ring true and there are also regular dream sequences (as in the first volume), that I'm sure Craft thinks are a very clever way to clue up the reader on his hero's state of mind but are actually boring and off-putting.

All that said, Craft isn't trying to be a contender for a Pulitzer (one hopes not anyway). This is just a bit of fun for a raining weekend. And on that level alone, the book kinda works. It's entertaining and the characters, although more sketches than actual paintings, are interesting. Quite a few of them return from the first book of the series.

Of note is the letter from David to Neil (near the end), which is unexpectedly moving.

Don't expect too much and you might enjoy yourself.

[Gare Bear · Rating 3 out of 5]

First I want to say that I love the mystery aspects of these novels. I'll be starting #3 here shortly.

I don't like giving away spoilers, but this book really aggravated me. I almost quit reading it completely at a certain point and threw my e-reader down and went to bed. Luckily today I decided to pick it up again and just see if something changes that will possibly make me feel a little better about the scenario that happened in the book.

Basically when it comes to relationships, I get tired of hearing excuses for why certain things happen and it feeling like it's pushing this whole narrative a certain way, BUT I believe Mark did a great job at bringing this in a different direction than I thought it was going to go. I may not completely agree with everything because of my own prejudices about how people are shown to be and act, but I do understand everyone's experiences to be different.

But I will reiterate that overall I really enjoyed this book. I think the investigator aspect and the whodunnit of it all is a page turner.

[Lady*M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two years after the events in Flight Dreams, Mark and Neil live together. They just finished renovation of their loft, Mark is still a star of Chicago Journal, Neil works in the organization of the city’s Celebration Two Thousand. Life is good. But, Mark gets an assignment which, at first, doesn’t appeal to him – to basically cover a science story, an alleged discovery of the tenth planet. His editor also gives him an assistant: a handsome, young reporter David Bosch who suffers from hero worship. The case of the tenth planet, the death of the reporter who was originally assigned to the story and temptation in a form of a young man all conspire to make Mark’s life complicated, to say the least.

Eye Contact is, in many ways, a better book than its predecessor. The story is once again told in present tense, but the writing is tighter, more mature and the dialogue more believable. The mystery and Mark’s private life are this time intertwined, rather than being separated. The characters are better fleshed out, though there is still room for progress there. Even Mark’s dreams are used better to show the temptations he’s facing, subconscious examination of his relationship with Neil, and his guilt. But, what impressed me the most is that the author demonstrated an exceptional eye for detail which was not the case in the previous novel. Whether they are in descriptions of surroundings (for example, Nathan Cain’s offices) or characters, these details really have impact on the overall story. Additionally, Mark, our protagonist, is more likable this time. His smugness is toned down and he is not as judgmental towards people he doesn’t agree with. But, he has more growing up to do – the rationalizations concerning his infidelity irritated me and I’m certain other readers will feel the same. Also, the way the author resolved the situation – off page – wasn’t what I hoped for. I wanted to see Mark work to get back into Neil’s good graces.

As with the first time, the mystery was interesting. The author provided us with multiple suspects and motives. Some of these secondary characters were especially colorful, like Pavo Zarnik, Lucille Haring or an Elvis-impersonating neighbor of Mark’s murdered colleague. Mark follows the leads on both cases – the tenth planet fraud and murder of Cliff Nolan – with the help of some of his friends and then the cases collide and lead him to the explosive revelation. It’s over the top but entertaining. The James Bond type ending might be too much for some readers. I still don’t really know how to feel about it. The element of the mystery I was least satisfied with was the villain’s motivation. It’s hard to discuss this without revealing too much, but I have to at least mention it. The conspiracy that Mark uncovers is worthy of the craziest fanatics and the author didn’t convince me that this man was crazy enough to do something like this for such a weak reason. For power? Definitely. But, not for this. The character that was introduced as intriguing and mysterious turned into a diabolical figure – hence the comparison to the Bond villain’s. His partners in crime made his actions even less believable. However, although it was published 15 years ago, his motive puts an interesting up-to-date spin on the story.

Eye Contact is a satisfying continuation of the Mark Manning series. The improvements in writing, storytelling and characterization compared to the first novel are significant. Considering the ending – Mark’s national fame – it will be interesting to see where the author takes him (and Neil) from here. I am curious to know and I hope other readers will be as well.

Recommended.

[Michael Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit better written than the first. There is still a tendency to explain too much out, but the characters are well developed enough to pull you in as a reader. This time around, Mark Manning has to solve a mystery that strikes closer to home and has greater consequences. The red herrings are not so distracting, but you feel more comfortable with the characters until Mark makes a big mistake in judgment and gives in to base instincts, but even then, well, he's forgivable from this reader's point of view.

[Ken Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set just prior to the turn of the millennium (actually, a year early, as the twenty-first century began in 2001) in Chicago, this newspaper writer focused procedural involved murder, trickery, and technology without really involving the police (much). While the main character is gay, the writing is subtle and not offending. A charming read, good for sitting by the fire with a glass (or two) of a good wine.

[Mark Gaulding · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun diversion. I didn't read the first book but I really enjoyed this gay lit/mystery.

[Lee Rey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mark continues his life with Neil, but he has temptations still being in his new life.