Usually political thrillers don't excite me, but this one quite did so. Probably the added interest for me of the strong LGBT element, and likely the foundation of Conspiracy Theory had me salivating like Pavlov's experimental dogs. Then too, the story is well-written, a real puzzler; and the "hard-boiled" Noir P.I. protagonist isn't--isn't hard-boiled, I mean, until somebody in power attempts to shut him down, and then he's all Terminator. Well, mostly.


I anticipate reading all the mysteries in this series (this is Dan Sharp Mysteries #5).

I enjoyed this but not as much as the earlier books in this series. I think this is because this mystery focuses on Candian politics and I don't really understand the ins and outs of the Canadian political system. Despite this I enjoyed the story because of the richness of the characters and the fact that I wanted to see how the pieces would all fit together in the end.

I really like this series because Dan Sharp is a very real character with flaws, strengths and a past. I love his determination and his friends, family and love life. I think all these aspects of his character add to the way the mysteries unfold. The writing in this series is good amd the pace of the story is just right.

The most important aspect of any mystery story for me is that I don't want to be able to guess who 'did it'. I like to keep thinking until the very end because the big reveal at the end is always the climax of the story for me. In this series I am always guessing right until the very end and this makes for a very satisfying reading experience.

This is definitely one mystery series that I will stick with.

Copy provided by publishers via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

This was a disappointing read - too much irrelevant information/story and not enough clarity around the actual plot - for those of us not up on Canadian politics much of the plot was a mystery. On top of this the plot was unbelievable in parts, especially considering that the lead characters partner was a cop.

The God Game is Jeffrey Round's 5th mystery featuring Canadian P.I. Dan Sharp. This series is a little more gritty and modern than the bulk of the series I read and review, but the Dan Sharp books are consistent winners and great reads, so I make an exception.

I have enjoyed the characters' development over the course of the series and the author has a deft hand with foreshadowing and planning. In the forward, Jeffrey Round says that as he wrote the book, he feared it would be too over the top and unbelievable but that as time went on, the political landscape in the USA and Canada made it more of a realistically cautionary tale than pure fiction.

Although the book is brutal and gritty in places, the violence is never gratuitous and always serves to move the plot along and provide a counterpoint to the more personal and emotional side of the narrative.

It's a fairly substantial (335 page) book and is very well written. It could definitely be read as a standalone, all the necessary background info is provided without feeling forced or unnatural. Published by Dundurn and released on Feb, 2018 in ebook and paperback formats.

Four stars, I think this one is my favorite in the series thus far.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an advance reading copy of this book. The views expressed are my own.

This is a suspense mystery story set in modern day Toronto, Canada. Dan Savage is a gay private investigator who is hired by Paul, an ambitious local politician, to find his gambling-addicted husband, Tony. The only lead he can give Dan is a list of Tony's gaming haunts. At one of them Dan finds someone who recently saw Tony there recklessly gambling away large sums of money. This was after Paul had cut off Tony's money supply, which of course raises questions about where Tony got the money. Dan finds a link between Tony and a politician who later died under suspicious circumstances when he was accused of embezzling funds. Questions are raised about whether it was actually murder rather than suicide.

Dan's inquiry catches the attention of an investigative news reporter who seems to have an inside track on some goings on at Queen's Park (the seat of the Ontario provincial government). There was a political scandal there over the closing of some power generating plants.These are linked to a shadowy backroom political operative known only as "The Magus". No one admits to knowing his or her actual identity. The reporter offers to share his information with Dan on a reciprocal basis, but he subsequently proves to be an unreliable ally. Dan calls on his contacts and previous experience to find out about Tony's whereabouts. He attracts unwanted and dangerous attention to himself, and as a warning a dead body is dumped on his doorstep.

There's a lot going on in Dan's personal life apart from the search for Tony. Dan and his romantic partner, Nick, a Toronto police officer, are planning their wedding with all the attendant stress and expense. Dan's investigation is a further source of friction between Dan and Nick. Nick correctly fears that Dan is unnecessarily putting himself in harm's way to investigate Tony's disappearance. Dan is mugged on his way to a meeting with someone who has information about Tony. Dan's personal story is actually more interesting than the disappearance one.
This is the fifth in a series of Dan Savage novels. It can be read on a standalone basis without much difficulty. It seems that some of the characters are carryovers from the earlier books. Learning their backstories from the previous stories may enhance this story. Donny, one of Dan's closest gay friends, comes to mind in this respect.
The story telling moves along at a good pace and the author makes good use of Toronto landmarks as setting. There's a very spy thriller-like meeting at Toronto's waterfront aquarium. It's noteworthy that the story is set in Toronto at the time Mayor Rob Ford 's antics and the power generating plant shutdown were in the news. More local colour of interest to Canadian readers.

This is my first experience with Dan Sharp. He's a hard character to like sometimes, doesn't let people get too close, even his partner (and soon to be husband) and friends. He very morally rigid and self reliant.
I thought the mystery was excellent (I didn't peg the bad guy til nearly the reveal, although I got a bad feeling about him early on and just couldn't put my finger on why).
The Canada backdrop made a nice change.
I look forward to the next book, and will certainly check out the the previous four.
NB: Don't let the writing style in the prologue put you off. The rest of the book is nothing like this.

Disclosure: I am also a Dundurn author, but I write nonfiction. (No spoilers here)
The God Game is the first book I've read by Jeffrey Round and it won't be the last. I love good mysteries!
Set in Canada, this murder mystery whirls through the corridors of power in the Ontario Legislature when one person has seemingly committed suicide and another has disappeared. Well crafted and believable, the story also shows how dirty politics can be.
I also enjoyed the sub-plot attached to the main character, Dan Sharp, a private eye, who is about to marry his gay partner, a cop. The book is an easy read, full of intrigue and action.
Highly recommended to readers of murder mysteries.

A political conspiracy being investigated by the Canadian sleuth

Dan Sharp is a private investigator searching for his client’s missing husband. He lives with his partner, Nick the cop, and his dog.

Dan and Nick are nervous about planning their gay wedding. Dan is worried about the expenses because he wants to pay the tuition fees for his son, Kendrick.

Peter Hansen hires Dan to find his missing husband, Tony. Dan discovers that Peter’s boss knew the MP of the opposite party (of Canadian Parliament) who was found hanged under the bridge – probably suicide. Then Dan suspected something fishy was going on.

Twists, corruption, “dark forces” behind the political parties, LBGT issues, and deaths follow in the trail of the investigation.

I thank Jeffrey Round for writing about the gay detective in the LBGT community. He can write a spy-thriller with LBGT Bond! I enjoyed this book.

Caesar 13

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review

This was my first exposure to a Dan Sharp mystery, so I could tell that I was jumping into the middle of a story, but it was easy to follow.

Overall, I liked this book. The characters are decently complex and there are a good number of twists and turns throughout the book. Admittedly, I figured out part of the major plot twist early on in the book. Not completely, but a good chunk of it.

The basic plot involves the alleged suicide of a Canadian politician and the missing husband of another political insider. The crux of the story is figuring out if the two have something in common. And if they do, how do these two seemingly separate plot lines intersect? Interspersed are a myriad of colorful characters that help move the plot along.

The pacing of the book was really good for this type of mystery novel. If you like Richard Stevenson’s Donald Strachey novels (but are tired of reading about Albany, NY), then I would recommend giving this book a read.

My mystery reading taste skews firmly toward the cozy, with a few exceptions. Jeffrey Round, a Canadian author, writes one of those exceptions.

Dan Sharp is a gay detective, an independent investigator, who is on the verge of getting married. He's reluctant for reasons he has difficulty parsing (except that he's always had bad luck in his relationships) though he wants to spend the rest of his life with Nick, his partner, who is a cop.

But he hasn't time to get things organized because a case begins taking up all his time. An official high in the local government comes to him and offers him a sizable amount of money to find his husband before the news media splashes it all over.

Tracking the vanished husband begins to connect with a murder disguised as suicide . . .

At the very beginning, Round writes about how, when he developed the story, it seemed way out there, but recent news events (especially on this side of the border, as well as Canadian corruption high up) have made his seemingly out-there story pretty much par for the course.

Round writes in tight, vivid prose, developing complicated characters, in particular Dan's troubled past and his emotional struggles, with hints of Nick's having to deal with prejudice in the police force. Counter to that are Dan's friends, specifically Donny, who brings some sparkle to the complications of gray, and Dan's excellent son and ex-wife, who remind us that good people exist. There's a terrific sense of place, with a delicious overlay of history to give dimension to the setting.

All along are knife-sharp insights into human nature, especially with respect to love and power, written with enough of a veneer of free indirect discourse so as to mostly mask the author behind the immersive third person POV. When one does glimpse the author, the effect is more cautionary than preachy as these interludes are quite short, and always arise out of Dan Sharp's quest for the truth.

I did guess the villain ahead of Dan Sharp. Maybe I was supposed to, because it added to the suspense, creating a sense of tension that I think equalled the impact of surprise. If not surpassed it.

Anyway, an absorbing read from an author I mean to keep an eye on.

Rounded up to 4 stars

The book #5 in Dan Sharp Mystery Series was my second book in the series. You can read it also as a stand alone.

I remember that I enjoyed the previous sequel (that you could also read as a stand alone), and I remember that I wanted to read more of the series. To my astonishment, I didn't know what the previous book was about. I remember that the mystery was good and that I admired Dan for his exceptional detective skills, but I didn't remember it in details as well as the fact that Dan had a cop boyfriend. It is embarrassing somehow, because in The God Game: A Dan Sharp Mystery Dan and Nick plan to get married, presumably their relationship was an essential part of the plot in the previous book. But you see, it is what I meant- you don't need to read previous books to understand what's going on here.

Dan's new client is a openly gay high-profile politician who hires Dan to find his missing husband.
The disappearance of Tony Moran that looks like an argument over money at the beginning turns into a spectacular political case full of political intrigues, maneuvering and criminal activities at the highest level. This case brings not only Dan in danger, but puts the relationship of a PI and his fiance to the hard test.




If you enjoy political thrillers, you'll like it. If you follow the Dan Sharp Mystery series, you shouldn't miss it. Jeffrey Round has a solid writing style that is pleasant to read, but that though doesn't deliver a wow-effect. It was a quick entertaining read that only confirmed my feeling about politics as a dirty business. Of course I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.

The God Game is an interesting read about the politics in Canada that seem to mirror the politics we see anywhere else. Corrupt! The story is told in a breezy fashion, and the author deserves credit for coming up with this intriguing story. That said, the writing does not rise above what is necessary to impart the story. The author telegraphed early on that a character that the protagonist admired was not going to prove worthy of his respect. I wish he had chosen another way to present this character so a surprise might have arisen That notwithstanding,. I would be happy to continue reading the novels of author Jeffrey Round. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.