Thanks NetGalley for a copy for an honest review.

Set in the 1930's where speakeasies, tough gangsters & tough cops ruled the day, Detective Frank Palmer stands an example of integrity against the rising crime on the streets. Called to the home of radio host Maxwell Morgan, it appears to be a routine murder investigation; but Palmer knows with organized crime so readily in the mix it will be nothing but routine.

Loved the setting for this novel. While it doesn't have the stylized eloquence of the Godfather; or the edge of a Raymond Chandler novel, it doesn't come off as cartoonish either. The descriptions & vernacular are spot on for the time period, the entire cast of characters each have a unique, well-constructed voice; & the plot is engaging & tightly woven, making the world easily visualized.

I was born decades after the golden age of radio; but have always loved listening to those programs. This book reminded me of all those great serials. I found the book to be solid entertainment & would, just like listeners tuned in every week for the next radio broadcast, revisit this world again.

Technically well written, but did not live up to expectations. There's nothing about this book that even comes close to the pulp/hardboiled mystery genre. The story moved slowly, and there was a lot of unneeded extra information, weighing things down and making the slow pace even slower. Mediocre at best.

Detective Frank Palmer is the star and driving force covering crime and mob rule over these haunted streets. However, this book will not easily fit into a USA crime drama, police procedural or a 1930’s gangster thriller. Both are here and find a filling homage to both aspects of such fiction but there is more. A femme fatale more Betty Boop than Bette Davis, Roselyn Farrell, actress is the one time girlfriend of Morgan Maxwell, accountant to the mob, now deceased and with loads of suspects to his murder.
Things would be manageable if Palmer could get along investigating this case; his main suspect is Nico Crocetti and the closer he gets to the truth the more heat he seems to attract from the mob boss.
Things are further complicated by the death of the Godfather who kept an uneasy piece over the City.
So we’re getting this, a simple who done it with a few more gangsters for decoration when a comic book hero intervenes to save the day. A cross between Spawn and any other superhero ‘The Mortuary’ seems to be a press invention or an explanation of when things were not clear or went to plan.
Interesting side plot perhaps might fit in to the overall story but then we get gun running and foreign agents to undermine a government overwhelmed by the depression and mass unemployment. So now it is a spy novel with espionage and social history thrown into this over seasoned cooking pot.
The fact that it all succeeds is a real positive for the author, the fact that it holds together as one piece and the crime is solved is fine plot management.
That it makes for an unusual but compelling read means it must be read and ruminated upon by as many people as possible.