Lucky Dey is working insane hours as a reserve deputy during an extremely bad wildfire season. A combination of personal (he's getting married in a few days) and professional issues are complicating his life and it seems like he is just a magnet for trouble. Everything from a nervous bride-to-be (who is also a cop), a psycho with a grudge, and other unexpected complications all come together at the worse possible time.

I wasn't particularly impressed with this one. The multiple plotlines (and subplots) are handled pretty well, there's not a lot of confusion as to what is going on, but there also isn't much of a sense of urgency to the action. For an action-thriller there is very little tension -- I was never caught up to the point where I couldn't wait to see what was happening.

This is sort of a standalone but it also reads like one chapter in a continuing story arc, if you haven't read the previous books in the series (I haven't) there are passing references that won't mean much. I suspect those who have been with the series from the start will enjoy it much more than I did. I wasn't invested in the characters enough to continue with this series.

Strong language, violence, adult situations.

***I received a free digital copy of this title from NetGalley.

Every year California wildfires become big news stories. Imagine if one of these fires got set to cover up a crime. That is the jumping off point for Doug Richardson’s new book Hip Slick and Dead. 

Lucky Dey is a semi-retired LA county sheriff’s deputy. He mostly puts in hours doing background checks but from time to time will get in uniform to aid in special assignments. During a rash of fires they ask Deputy Dey to be in uniform to help with neighborhood evacuations. 

Unfortunately for Lucky he ends up meeting a resident insistent on returning home to check on a priceless collection. After a minor physical altercation the resident evacuates. A day later that resident finds his collection missing and suspects Lucky as being in on the theft. 

There are several other sub plots in the book but I don’t want to spoil anything. Eventually Lucky has to go on the run to as the criminals he is chasing, start hunt his family. 

The author writes in a style I love to use when writing a police procedural. Some chapters are told from the view of the criminal. Other chapters are then the officer reacting to the situation. The author uses the technique brilliantly. Many chapters end in a cliff hanger only to pick that same situation up from a different point of view. Keep in mind many of these cliff hanger chapters don’t resolved in the first paragraph of the next chapter. 

Anyone looking for a good police procedural novel will enjoy Hip Slick and Dead. Make sure to pick up your copy on Amazon today.

Another excellent Lucky Dey action packed story. Well written with an intricate plot that develops nicely as the story progresses. An enemy from his past long believed dead has turned up to wreak havoc in Lucky’s life. This is a light read that anyone can enjoy, the characters have evolved and maybe at last Lucky will get to experience family life.

This was a pretty good mystery thriller, I hadn't heard of this series before, but I'm glad I did. It was a fun read that kept me in suspense.