First Lady

Justin and Cuddy #3

by Michael Malone

Critically acclaimed novelist and award-winning short story writer Michael Malone is the smart, literate, compassionate voice of the American south. His gift for crafting the great American comedy, as he did in Handling Sin, is matched only by his ability to create mystery novels ripped with tension, twists and humanity.
A woman's body has been found-murdered, mutilated, tagged and addressed to Lt. Justin Savile V and Police Chief Cuddy R. Mangum. Dubbed the "Guess Who Killer" by a voracious press, Hillston, North Carolina, has a serial killer on its hands. The media and the mayor demand answers while the city lives in fear. Savile and Mangum are being taunted and stalked. Worse, they have no leads.
Plot driven in the classic sense of a bestseller, yet written with literary style and substance, First Lady is a novel you will want to read and savor yourself and share with a friend. Continuing the series begun with lauded novels Time's Witness and Uncivil Seasons, Michael Malone's return proves a thrilling success.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Crime, Humor, Mystery Thriller, Contemporary, Detective

430 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Michael Malone was the author of ten novels, a collection of short stories, and two works of nonfiction. Educated at Carolina and at Harvard, he was a professor in Theater Studies at Duke University. Among his prizes are the Edgar, the O. Henry, the Writers Guild Award, and the Emmy. He lived in Hillsborough, North Carolina, with his wife.

Reviews

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

REREAD 2/24/20

This is the third adventure of Justin Saville and Cuddy Mangum, a police duo in North Carolina - and best friends to boot. Justin is the lead homicide detective of the department, fond of his cocktails and the ladies, and he’s the progeny of a small southern dynasty. Cuddy is the Chief of Police and Justin’s boss; he’s driven, impatient and at times arrogant.

The Justin/Cuddy books capture the “New South”, which means a lot of wrestling with the Old South, and are full of well developed, rich, and at times, quirky characters – all captured with great dialogue. The books are poignant, funny, engaging and extremely well written - novels in the best sense of the term that just happen to be mysteries/police procedurals.

First Lady follows this formula. Justin and Cuddy are confronted with a serial killer among their midst, who takes a perverse pleasure in mocking the police as they attempt to identify and apprehend him; the local TV reporters more than willing partners when it comes to dramatizing the “hunt”.

In the not so distant background is a political brouhaha/cover-up; a courtroom drama of a previous murder and the arrival of an Irish female rock super-star in their town. Justin and Cuddy are deeply and personally embroiled in all of this. If there is a fault with First Lady it’s that the culprit becomes obvious about ¾ of the way through the book, but the story is so engaging, you’ll keep reading – at least I did.

A dozen years separated this novel from its predecessor – the author is also a very successful TV writer – and it’s almost been a decade since this book was published. This is unfortunate, but I guess understandable. If you’re looking for great book that’s also a mystery, First Lady is an excellent read - and will more than likely lead you to the previous two entries.

Highly recommended.

[Elizabeth Quinn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michael Malone first introduced the cops of Hillston, NC, in his novel Uncivil Seasons in 1983. His focus characters are Cuddy Magnum, born on the wrong side of the tracks and now the town's police chief, and Justin Savile, scion of a premier WASP family and head of the homicide squad. In First Lady they're after a serial killer who appears to take great pleasure in taunting them after -- and eventually before -- his murders. The love lives of both men -- Cuddy with the governor's wife and Justin, unofficially separated from his wife following the death of their toddler son, with a famous Irish rock chanteuse with a drinking problem -- wind up entangled in the case as well, causing difficulties for both men. As if that wasn't enough, a murder trial of a wife-killing college professor underway at the courthouse looks to be heading toward an acquittal. Malone's novels are far more than simple whodunits. Rather, they're what I call town books -- novels with a sprawling cast of characters and dozens of small subplots which add up to an in-depth evocation of a particular place at a particular time. It's a winning combination for me, and I rank Malone among the best writers of crime fiction today.

[Doreen Fritz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although I haven't read the first two books in the series (I didn't even know it WAS a series), the story and characters made this an okay stand-alone book. Set in a small town in North Carolina, the story follows a short period of time when the town appears to have a serial killer on the loose at the same time that a world-famous songstress (think Taylor Swift or Lady Gaga) comes to town for a couple of concerts. Justin, the head of the detective unit, and Cuddy, Chief of Police are charged with solving the series of murders, with seemingly everyone else getting in their way. This includes the Sheriff, the DA, the governor, and the reporters. And the murderer is probably somebody they know, as he (or she) keeps leaving personal clues, almost taunting him to "get him." Full of suspense, but somewhat long-winded, this story keeps the reader engaged and ready for the next clue -- or the next murder.

[Jade Currid · Rating 4 out of 5]

First Lady by Michael Malone is the third novel in a murder mystery series featuring protagonists Lieutenant Justin Savile, V. and Captain C.R. "Cuddy" Magnum of a prominent police department in a small Southern College town in North Carolina. An illustrious author and Yale educated man, Michael Malone delivers an engaging read that colorfully depicts the timeless aspects of Southern culture while intertwining humor with the dark subject matter associated with a murder mystery. He has a beautiful grasp of the English language and a delightful way of stringing words together.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars. It's a pleasure to start what sounds like a routine police procedural and find instead a smoothly written novel with sharp dialogue, colorful characters and local flavor. It's the most compelling page turner I've read in some time. I'm a bit burned out on the serial killer plot line, so perhaps that's what keeps me from giving it a solid five stars, but really, I couldn't ask for much better. Additionally, I have not read the previous two entries in the series but I didn't feel lost.

[Bobbi · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a Waste

Felt like a mash up of Laura and The Lincoln Lawyer, at the expense of a promising personal backstory. Hated the singer and one more "jaisus" to signify that the accent is Irish and i was ready to put the book down and be done with it.

I hope when our hero decides to drive through the night to awaken his wife with a kiss, he finds her curled up with ... absolutely anybody. Idjit.

[Thelma Fountain · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this story it was full of interesting twists and turns. This was a complicated murder mystery. It continued to keep me guessing and interested. This is an older book so I was surprised by some of the dates mentioned but that did not spoil the book for me. It was a good read. Highly recommend.

[Ed Rogers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another enjoyable 'whodunit', this one is particularly dark. I like being lead to discover the bad guy and in this one I got a whiff of who it might be only to have my guess brushed aside...twice. Seems I'm not as clever as I imagine myself to be (grin). But then, just in the nick of time....

Well written, with great characters and a good storyline.

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Justin and Cuddy and all of their crew! They are busy trying to catch a serial killer in their town, with very little help and NO LEADS. Cuddy makes it worse by claiming that they will arrest the killer in a certain short time period or he will resign! I always find them entertaining, the characters are well defined, but likeable.

[Kathryn · Rating 1 out of 5]

This novel actually gets a less than one star rating. How is it that such a well educated author can write such garbage? A small town North Carolina detective actually cheats on his wife with a rock superstar? Really.

[Alison Gulley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't actually finish this one. The writer is a North Carolinian (the setting of the novel), but his characters don't ring true. Their speech seems to me to be a caricature about what people who aren't from the south think southerners talk like. And the plot just didn't grab me.

[Cheryl Rose · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really liked the first two books, which I read years ago, about Cuddy and Justin. But I really didn't like this book, that left both of them is sad places and I don't think he ever wrote another about them. Plus, I just don't like serial killer books anyway.

[Allen Duarte · Rating 3 out of 5]

The weakest book in the Justin & Cuddy series (though admittedly I read the other two long ago). Overloaded w characters and with many pages spent w nothing really going on, the biggest flaw is the Irish rockstar character. A patently cartoonish creation, she threatens the entire enterprise.

[Stefan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. A mystery set in Hillsborough/Durham/Chapel Hill. A young rock star. A jaded detective. Quirky characters. Funny lines. Gripping plot, strong writing. An all around great book.

[Rezlaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

Contains the most suspenseful, unexpected scene that I have ever read in a book.

[Pam Windley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not as expected. A fast read and difficult to put down. Fun to guess or imagine locations that would fight the local of the book.

[Susan Sanders]

DNF after about 40 pages. I hated all these people already.

[Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wondeful read. Great characters, outstanding plot, suprising ending.

[Kyra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Terrific!

[Jeannie May · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great mystery, good characters. An excellent writer!

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Malone hits another home run!

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

In my opinion Mr. Malone got too wordy explaining things that didn’t matter to the story line.

[Dominique · Rating 3 out of 5]

C’est une excellente intrigue, mais il y a des longueurs du début au 3/4 qui font que parfois, on n’a pas vraiment envie de le reprendre.

[Jim Leckband · Rating 3 out of 5]

If only there were rating subsets. Right now when I rate a book, the rating I give to Ulysses, for example, is the same I would give to a classic kid's book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar. In the GR universe, those books look the same, though they are rated under very different criteria.

So, if I was rating "First Lady" just in the subset of Detective/Mystery novels, it would definitely be 4 to 5 stars. Unfortunately, there is a different subset that Michael Malone has had the luck to be placed in. Namely, the subset of his other books such as Handling Sin, Dingley Falls and Foolscap: Or, the Stages of Love. In that subset, sadly, "First Lady" is at three stars. It is like I can only rate at the most restrictive applicable subset level. First world problem...

The main problem I had with the book was that it was obvious who the "Guess Who" killer was. Using Chekhov's gun axiom (a gun shown in the first act, must be used in the third), the only other things happening in the novel is the trial of a man accused of murdering his wife in a fake home invasion and the coming to town of a Sinead O'Connor-type rock singer. Of course all these will be related (and it is masterfully done). But the problem is that there is absolutely no other suspect presented to the reader that has the mind, motive or means to be the "Guess Who" killer than the accused murderer. So the book becomes a waiting game of seeing when Justin and Cuddy finally see what the reader has been seeing for a couple of hundred of pages.

However, they are an entertaining couple of hundred of pages. The characterization and fun that he has at the characters' expense is the joy of reading Malone. He has a bit of Dickens in him, he does. The characters that we have met in the previous Justin and Cuddy novels are here (though some of them have been dealt with off scene - like Briggs Caedman's daughter). I especially liked that Bubba Percy had such a big role in this one. He is a hoot. I am sad that it appears that this is the last Justin and Cuddy novel.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up only because it was a book set in the south. (North CArolina to be specific, but still not too far away.) My plan is to give everyone coming to the convention in 2007 a book by a southern author or set here. This fit the bill. I'd not read a book by Mr Malone before, and set about rectifying that before giving the book away.

Found that I really enjoyed the book. Malone seems to have gotten the location and the people dead on. This apparently is part of a series "Justin and Cuddy novels" but can stand alone as well. I didn't feel out of it for not having read any others. The main characters are flawed, but likable and trying to do a good job, and there is a sense of honor and integrity rare in many of these novels. Murder, unrequited love, age old friendships, irresistible attractions, celebrity shenanigans, politics, psychotic killers and good writing. Worked for me.

And at one point there was a passage that resonated with the truth in my life where aging family abounds:

The present was receding from her, pulling her down the rabbit hole back to childhood where the real red queen in Alice in Wonderland was right: you do have to move twice as fast to stay in the same place, and when you're old, you're too slow to do it so you kose ground, The future vanishes. You can't remember what you should do tomorrow and then you can.y remember what you did today, And in the end all you have is long ago.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pickeed this one up at a library sale because I remember liking Uncivil Seasons quite a bit. This is a murder mystery involving a serial killer in the town of Hillston, North Carolina. It's very well done; the characters are engaging and pull you in, though I spotted the killer a good 75 pages before the cops did. Still, the book was quite enjoyable.

I've found that many times in books when a character is a big music star, things somehow ring false; maybe the character doesn't fit in, or the tie to the rest of the characters doesn't work, or the portrayal of huge fame is off. In this case, one of the characters is an Irish singer who is very huge, and is in Hillston for a concert. Erratic, she's known for missing some shows. Her involvement with the book's main character is maybe a bit unbelievable, but the rest of her portray is good. I like this bit: "she offered the most intimate privacy while at the same time promising, through every gliding catch, every strange modulation o fkey, such large and intense feeling that the sound of her voice was ike a great drum beating out not just her own heart's pulse but everyone else's too."

[Basma Parkar · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have a weakness for well-written murder mysteries. Usually I can’t put the book down until I know who the murderer is and what the motive was. Sometimes I stay up late reading until my eyes can’t take it anymore. So, I was quite eager to start this one.

The story is set in Hillston, NC. A young woman’s mutilated body is found with a tag addressing it to the town’s police department. The police are in search of the killer, dubbed ‘Guess Who’, without much success. It doesn’t help that they are being mocked at and challenged by him. The tension builds up as another girl is killed and they are given a deadline, failing which the Police Chief will have to resign.

The book has everything from intrigue, seduction and violence to politics, music and humour. I believe it would make a great movie. As a book, its quite enjoyable, though nothing extra-ordinary. It reminded me a little of Arthur Hailey’s Detective and Sidney Sheldon’s Best Laid Plans.
A small disappointment for me was that I guessed who the murderer was long before the police. When that happens in a mystery book, a little bit of the thrill is lost.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just learned this is the last book in the Justin Savile and Cuddy Mangum series. However, it was my first introduction to Michael Malone. Now I can't wait to go back and read the others.

SYNOPSIS: A woman's body has been found—murdered, mutilated, tagged and addressed to Lt. Justin Savile V and Police Chief Cuddy R. Mangum. Dubbed the "Guess Who Killer" by a voracious press, Hillston, North Carolina, has a serial killer on its hands. The media and the mayor demand answers while the city lives in fear. Savile and Mangum are being taunted and stalked. Worse, they have no leads. Plot driven in the classic sense of a bestseller, yet written with literary style and substance, First Lady is a novel you will want to read and savor yourself and share with a friend.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did not realize that Malone was the author of "Handling Sin" (which I highly recommend) until after reading this mystery.

It is a mystery for fiction-lovers. Not a formulaic, by-the-numbers mystery (with flashes of a serial killer's twisted thoughts thrown in for the creep factor), but rather a very good novel about a detective desperately trying to solve a set of murders.

I wish I had read his other two mysteries with this cast of characters first - but I'll read them out of order with pleasure.

[Vivian · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was entertaining. The author is a good story teller though rather than a good writer. Although the story was interesting, it was more like a made for t.v. movie rather than a big screen movie. The characters were portrayed a little on the silly side for my taste. Even the characters who were supposed to be intelligent had dumb little characteristics that made them more of the laughable type than the serious type. The villain was stretched pretty far out there too. But as I said, it was entertaining so three stars for that.