Nantucket Grand

Henry Kennis Mystery #3

by Steven Axelrod

"Axelrod packs plenty of layers and surprises into this intelligent, twisty tale. Henry's wry humor as well as his affection for the residents he serves exude warmth and will appeal to fans of Bill Crider's Sheriff Dan Rhodes." ― Booklist During a long winter and short, chilly spring, a series of disturbing incidents rock the small resort island of Nantucket. A Land Bank executive dies in a suspicious hunting accident, a prominent local family's historic summer cottage burns down in an arson fire, and a teenage girl lies comatose in the hospital from a drug overdose. When spring turns to summer and the tourists flood the island, the mysterious cycle of violence spins faster. A young Jamaican boy is found dead in the harbor, a sex-for-drugs pornography ring is exposed, and a beloved local hero is murdered in cold blood. Could all of these events be part of the same sinister conspiracy? Poetry-writing Police Chief Henry Kennis, back for his third case in Nantucket Grand by Steven Axelrod, doubts it. But his new girlfriend, Jane Stiles, an author of cozy mysteries, is certain that all these terrible events are connected. In one of her books, they would all be related. Henry scoffs, but as the cords pull tighter, drawing him into a scandal that would change Nantucket forever, he begins to realize that Jane might be right, after all. But is it already too late?

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Fiction

354 pages, Hardcover

First published May 3, 2016

About the author

Steven Axelrod holds an MFA in writing from Vermont College of the Fine Arts and as a former Hollywood screenwriter is still a member of the Writers Guild of America. A father of two, he lives on Nantucket Island, Massachusetts, where he paints houses and writes.

Reviews

[Doreen Petersen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Received from Netgalley. Wasn't too sure about this book until I started reading it and then the whole mystery just pulled me in and wouldn't let go until I finished it. This is a really good book and well worth someone checking it out.

[Susan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Lots of different incidents are happening on the island of Nantucket, but are they random or connected.
Really couldn't get into the book, don't know why not
a NetGalley book

[Janina K Bratina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whew, made it through this book. Quite a convoluted and confusing plot. Liked his first two books - simple mysteries. Not sure what this book is - mystery, a sampling of the author's extensive vocabulary, an opportunity to pontificate on various subjects, a tryout for a James Bond world domination screenplay, or a genuine attempt at literary fiction with character development, etc. You can decide for yourself. The book is worth a read, but I found myself puzzled as to what the author was really wanting the book to be.

[Rick · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was interesting to me mainly because it takes place on one of my favorite places, the island of Nantucket, and the descriptions were nice. But the story was superficial, with too many characters to follow, and scenes that read like an action movie.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

First book I’ve read by this author… though some of subject matter was troubling and there were an awful lot of characters to keep up with, the writing was good, and kept me guessing about how it would end until the end…

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the 1st Steven Axelrod book I have read, and I enjoyed the story and the setting. Brings Nantucket and its year round people to life.

[Victor Gentile · Rating 5 out of 5]

Steven Axelrod in his new book, “Nantucket Grand” Book Three in the Henry Kennis Mystery series published by Poisoned Pen Press gives us another adventure with Henry Kennis.

From the back cover: During a long winter and short, chilly spring, a series of disturbing incidents rock the small resort island of Nantucket. A Land Bank executive dies in a suspicious hunting accident, a prominent local family’s historic summer cottage burns down in an arson fire, and a teenage girl lies comatose from a drug overdose.

When spring turns to summer and the tourists flood the island, the mysterious cycle of violence spins faster. A young Jamaican boy is found dead in the harbor, a sex-for-drugs pornography ring is exposed, and a beloved local hero is murdered in cold blood. Could all of these events be part of the same sinister conspiracy?

Poetry-writing Police Chief Henry Kennis, back for his third case in NANTUCKET GRAND by Steven Axelrod, doubts it. But his new girlfriend, Jane Stiles, an author of cozy mysteries, is certain that all these terrible events are connected. In one of her books, they would all be related. Henry scoffs, but as the cords pull tighter, drawing him into a scandal that would change Nantucket forever, he begins to realize that Jane might be right, after all. But is it already too late?

The case comes to shattering conclusion as a vengeful father, a damaged beauty, a ruthless billionaire, and a stone-cold killer converge on the 150-foot luxury yacht that gives the book its title. Henry, putting his own life at stake, must take desperate action to set things right and save the world-his world-the little comma of scrub pine and dune grass he has come to call home.

I have to admire the mind of Steven Axelrod that he can come out with this highly complicated cases and let me say that Mr. Axelrod has come out with his best story yet. Mr. Axelrod has provided us with a marvelous character in Henry Kennis and in Jane Stiles. It is so much fun reading about them and getting involved with them. The story hums along at a fast pace as they work to figure out just what is going on. “Nantucket Grand” is loaded with twists and turns and red herrings that will leave you guessing all the while you are flipping pages to find out what happens next. I am so looking forward to reading the next adventure from this highly talented author.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Poisoned Pen Press. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third in a series but the first I have read. Of course this mystery takes place in beautiful Nantucket. The book starts with a chapter to really pull you in—Alana is a teenager and Jared has a crush on her. The problem is that Jared is skinny with pimples and Alana is very pretty so Jared feels he doesn’t have a chance. Alana leaves a book in the class she shares with Jared so he decides this is a great way to talk to her and he takes the book to her house. While waiting outside to build up his courage another boy arrives—a tall good looking hunk named Mason. Alana gets in the car with Mason and Jared decides he must follow. The house they go to has many adults at it and as Jared is looking in the window he see Alana arguing with her friend Jill. All of a sudden a fight breaks out and Mason tries to get Alana out of there—Jared helps by tripping up an adult that is chasing them and then uses his car to rescue Alana. The end—no not really—then the mystery begins. What where they doing at the house with the adults and obviously there was a lot of booze and drugs. The kids of course are terrified because the adults know who they are. Murders start happening, a house is burnt down, Jill is in the hospital in a coma with a drug overdose, Oscar is dead of a drug overdose in the marsh. The Chief of Police is trying to figure it all out and Alana spills everything she knows with a promise not to confront people until he can arrest them. It takes over a year and several more murders to bring this to a close with Alana playing detective and helping the Chief even though he keeps telling her to stop it. There is a parcel of land involved also—how can the developers get ahold of it? The ending works out wonderfully. This was a very well written book and I would highly recommend it!!

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book over the weekend. I couldn't put it down! Steven Axelrod has a new fan in me. This was mystery about a series of murders that take place on Nantucket over a period of time. The main character the local police chief/poet, writer, Henry Kennis, a relative newcomer, (he's lived here for 10 years now) is doing to his best to deal with the recent crime wave which involves everyone from local teenagers to the Nantucket big money power brokers, it was a great read and I want to read more of Steven's work. Two thumbs way up!

[Grey853 · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book starts with point of view and then switches to another. There's a murder, but then a overdose, or is it murder? Also, there's apparently and underage porn ring operating in the area.

I found that there were too many characters and incidences, but they weren't well connected. It was hard to follow. The dialogue was good, but the story itself didn't do much for me.

[Anne, Unfinished Woman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Erudite, laugh-out-loud humor, complexity all serve up a very engaging mystery/crime story. I enjoyed the literary, art and music references. The only negative was the references to the past crimes and the resolutions of earlier books, leaving me unenthusiastic about reading them. I like a character driven story and Axelrod is clearly talented with his development.

[Rhonda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too slow!

[Sutifed · Rating 2 out of 5]

An easy, beach read.