What happened to Jamal Jones? Goff and his band of friends are on the hunt to find the answers when Jamal is arrested along with 2 friends.. A book full of twists, turns and a bit of romance too. I liked the book. Now I need to read the rest of the series.

I received an advance reader copy of “ Mainely Fear” from Net Galley in return for an honest review.

“ Mainely Fear” is the second novel in a series of detective novels set in rural Maine and featuring Goff Langdon, presented as a cool dude, fashionably “Woke” and apparently not too concerned with money. He owns the CoffeeDog book shop which specializes in mysteries, and runs a private detective office out of a back room in the store. The name of the book shop derives from his Labrador, named Coffee Dog, or maybe vice versa. Michael Cost, the author has an obvious affinity for cutesy or the whimsical. The dog and shop have cutesy names, yes, but also do some characters , like a restaurant owner called Goldilocks. Then there is Mr . 4-by-Four (not a typo ), a semi - reformed lawyer and boozer, who is Langdon’s ad how legal beagle. The police chief, Burt is an archetype : fat, none too bright and full of donuts. Other characters are Krachit, Fast Eddie and a basketball coach named Mr. Pious. There is also a restaurant called the Wretched Lobster. You may find this charming, even cute maybe. I did not. Mr. Cost goes everywhere with his dog, including restaurants and bars, where the dog eats anything off patron’s plates when they are not watching, or even if they are. Langdon’s response is , “ he’s always hungry.” Ugh.Not cute.
The plot is simple enough. The town of Brunswick , along with much of Maine suffered a massive snow and ice storm that caused widespread power outages. Langdon is approached one day by one Letitia Jones, whose son has just been arrested by the Brunswick police for a of burglary / vandalism spree at local homes that occurred while homeowners were away to stay in hotels that had heat and power. The perps were three students from an area prep school, none of whom had previous records. All were basketball players on the path to college and the pros. The mother Letitia, said her son, Jamal, had never been in trouble and had no reason to start now. She’s asks Langdon to investigate.
I note here that it is important to the plot that the woman, her Jamal, and his two friends are black. The young men are attending a mostly white, expensive New England Prep school,so you might guess where this is going. It goes slowly, though. Langdon, as writtenby Mr Cost, is a laid back kind of hero. His wife has left him and he still loves her, though is is getting emotionally closer to his gym buddy and gal pal,Chabal, who nursed him through wounds suffered in the first novel. He is just now getting back into shape. He is been on the wagon for some time, but that does not last,of course. His relationships with male friends and Chabal depend on a lot of sarcastic humor of the male bonding type. Tiring.
Langdon, as the main character, has little depth. Perhaps that was better developed in book number one, but in this one he is shallow. His method for investigation seems to be insult people, get drunk and muddle on. Conversations tend to be elliptical, often comedic, or what passes for it in the author’s effort at humor. Langdon was written as a tough guy, but seems more of a dilettante, a guy playing at being a private eye similar to the books he sells in the book store.


I thought that the book moved slowly with a lot of wandering about. It is soon clear who the bad guy is behind the trouble Jamal is in and there are hints to the sharp- eyed reader that the mother is not the hard working woman she proclaims to be. Not to mention that in Langdon’s first trip to the prep school it is clear that a great deal is amiss. The climatic events were, in my opinion, out of sync with the tone of the book, as if the author wanted a big finish. Some of Langdon’s feckless pals suddenly go all Rambo, where basically having spent the book being comedy relief.
I had planned to read the first book in the series and there is a third coming soon, but I will not spend more time with Langdon, his dog and quirky friends. When I a mystery a crime thriller I expect some level of noir. This book was more like a Thin Man movie , but without the appeal of Nick and Nora.
Trigger notes: some violence , some crime sexual references, and a torture scene.

Mainely Fear by Matt Cost
Goff Langton Mainely Mysteries #2

Interesting take on private investigation in small town Maine. Goff Langdon has a presence in town as he visits friends, eats meals, works, and takes Coffee Dog everywhere he goes. This is the first book I have read by this author and it stands alone without having to read book one first.

What I liked:
* Langdon: a man that seems a bit in flux. He has a floundering marriage, a daughter he adores, a bookstore he enjoys, many friends, and a private investigation business that sometimes creates trouble.
* Coffee Dog: a great canine companion with a hollow leg
* Missouri: Langdon’s five-year-old daughter adds a bit of lightheartedness to the story
* The supporting characters: Bart, Star, Goldilocks, Richam, and others
* Chabal: friend to Langdon with potential for more
* The writing, plot, twists and turns
* The location
* That I felt I was there, I was invested, it was believable, and it wasn’t always easy
* That I was able to really REALLY dislike the baddies
* That good eventually overcame evil

What I didn’t like:
* The baddies – they were heinous
* Realizing that issues faced by Jamal, his mother, and others in this book are all too common in real life

Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Would I read more in this series? Yes

Thank you to NetGalley and Encircle Publications for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4-5 Stars

Mainely Fear takes place in Brunswick Maine just after the Ice Storm of ‘98 that left most of Maine without power for close to two weeks. I went through that and actually was working in Brunswick during much of the power outage. It was great to be able to visit that time and place l again while sitting in front of my roaring fire.
I have had so much fun with this series so far. I just want to hang out at Goldilocks Pub with Langdon, Coffee Dog, and all their strange group of friends. I would love to exchange Monty Python quotes and shop in Langdon’s book store and maybe even help chip in when Langdon is trying to solve one of his mysteries. These are such great characters and I didn’t want the book to end, leaving me in a book hangover, thinking about the dangerous fun we all just had.
I have spent a bit of time in Brunswick where a lot of this takes place and I can tell you that it is fun to follow along in my head as the gang drives up Maine St, next to the commons and the gazebo, past Bowdoin College, past Pleasant Hill Rd and out towards Mere Point.
Thank you NetGalley for a copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I wasn’t too sure about this book, but it sounded interesting so I requested it from NetGalley. Goff Langdon is a part time private investigator and bookstore owner. He doesn’t search for cases; they seem to find him. When a mother comes to him after her son has been accused of burglary and vandalism it isn’t because he didn’t do it…he did do it and she wants to know why. An intriguing mystery with a host of fascinating characters as Langdon proceeds to investigate while dealing with his marriage that is on the rocks and his five-year old darling daughter, Missouri, who steals every scene. I enjoyed how he solved the mystery as no one seemed to be telling the complete truth. I think I would have enjoyed it even more if I had read the first book as it took a while to figure out who the characters were and how they were related to Langdon. I received an advance review copy at no cost and without obligation for an honest review. (by paytonpuppy)

Mainely Fear had too many disparate characters and too many plot twists for me. There was disconnection among the characters, and they did not always interact smoothly nor convincingly. The plot of a young, talented basketball player from a low income neighborhood near Boston being drawn into some fairly petty criminal acts probably would have been solid on its own. However, his mother turns out to be a prostitute, the school where he went to beef up his test scores to get into college has at least one prurient staff member, and the detective cum bookstore owner's love life and drinking prowess gets a little old. I also could never understand why "4 by Four" is a good name for the detective's friend who seemed like a superfluous character. I would be willing to try another book in this series by the same author in the hope that it's less complicated and makes more sense.

Mainely Fear is quirky and full of twists. I was so happy to see the unique characters I fell in love with return for another mystery. (Especially Coffee Dog)! I definitely recommend reading book one, but you can enjoy this without doing so. This time it's a question not of whom committed the crime, but who put the kid who did commit it up to it. Goff once again dives in head first, only to find out the water is a bit deeper than expected. A little less cozy than book one, but enjoyable all the same!

Atmospheric Maine....
The second Goff Langdon mystery finds the laid back Goff with a sensitive and complex case on his hands. With an atmospheric setting of an icy and frozen Maine and with credible characters this is an enjoyable and engaging mystery with a likeable protagonist.

3 and 1 / 2 stars

Bookstore owner and sometime private investigator Goff Langdon and his loyal dog Coffee Dog have another adventure on their hands.

A very distressed mother tells Goff that while she knows that her son, Jamal, committed the crime for which he is being charged, she does not know why. Jamal is being truculent and does not want to tell his mother. Mom feels that her son has been coerced. Jamal is a rising basketball star. Why would he throw his scholarship away? Who put him up to the crime?

The characters in this book seem very real. They all have ordinary concerns that are peeked at, but that don't detract from the story line at all. The book is fairly well written, but to me it seemed to wander a bit. Could have been just me being stressed out a lot lately though.

I want to thank NetGalley and Encircle Publications, LLC for forwarding to me a copy of this good book for me to read, enjoy and review.

I started this book as I went to Bowdoin and I missed the icy bucolic atmosphere of Maine and ended up enjoying the story.
Damaged, recovering Langston is a private eye, connected with the police for good and bad. His marriage is falling apart, in kind of an ok way, while he has the hots for his partner whose marriage is collapsing in a not so good way. Together they start to investigate local crimes with the usual complications ensuing. Small things turn into big things and as always with small towns, good people turn out to be not so good.

This was a very enjoyable read, and I look forward to reading more.