Gritty & Delicious in the Best Way!

I was one chapter in when I felt as though a noir film that shows on Turner Classic Movies was playing out within the pages of Velma Gone Awry, the first book in A Brooklyn 8 Ballo Mystery series by Matt Cost. This is a gritty and delicious noir set amongst the atmospheric time period of the 1920s. While the story skews masculine it definitely didn’t turn me off. The masculinity and vernacular of the 1920s gave the story an authenticity that I appreciated. The themes of prohibition, flappers, socialites, writers, rival gangs and soon-to-be prominent gangsters further enhanced the stories authenticity and grit, as well as provided Cost with an abundance of material for his well crafted plot twists and turns. All while his unique, in both name and character, private investigator 8 Ballo searches for Velma. 8 is a larger man in both height and weight, is a chick magnate, educated and a veteran of WWI. This is a refreshing departure from the stereotypical PI I’ve encountered as a reader. While the famous and infamous parade amongst the pages of most chapters, it is the character 8 Ballo and Cost’s fantastic writing that kept me enthralled and wanting more. I can’t wait for book two in the series so I can learn what characters from this one have returned. I was given an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in exchange for my honest review.

Set in Brooklyn in the Roaring Twenties you couldn't ask for a more fast paced read! Filled with familiar names in that era, the book was hard to put down. 8 Ballo is the protagonist in this first book of the series. Set at a time period you get a fantastic "feel" for that era. Hired by a wealthy business man, he is hired to find his 25 year old daughter, Velma. The journey begins and you are off on a wild ride! I read this book in one day and look forward to more!

A well plotted and gripping historical mystery. It's well plotted, the mystery is full of twists and I liked the mix of fictional and historical characters.
The storytelling is excellent and the plot flows.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

Velma was raised by a step-father after her mother’s death at age 13 and seems far off the rails of society’s norms and heading for personal destruction.

8 Ballo is a private detective hired by her father to find her and bring her home, but finding Velma is not so easy. She has protectors in the underworld of the city. Velma is caught in an ongoing struggle for the continued dominance of the drug and prostitution trade.

Velma is exceedingly beautiful and has many admirers who would fall on their swords for the young lady. Meanwhile, her father’s competitors would like to control her and ruin her father’s hold on the drug trade.

Falling for the charms of Velma was not in 8’s plan, but he is torn between his contract to her father and his affection for Velma. The story takes many twists and keeps the reader engaged. Enjoy! 4.5 stars – CE Williams
Book one is off to a good start. Recommended!

Velma Gone Awry by Matt Cost is a well written historical mystery that brings me back to the roaring 20's, one of my favorite time periods for historical mysteries.

We meet 8 Ballo, yes his parents named him 8 because after 7 children, they got lazy and named him 8. The story takes place during Prohibition in Brooklyn, New York.

8 is a private detective that is hired by a wealthy man to find his daughter Velma, a flapper that has gone missing.

This mystery was so well crafted with twists and turns and red herrings. I really enjoyed reading about icons such as Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald as well as Babe Ruth and Bugsy Siegel.

Once I started reading this book, I could not stop. The author created such a fast-paced exciting mystery I was flipping through the pages so quickly.

The story flowed so nicely and I absolutely loved how the author brought the roaring 20's to life.

This is the first book I have read by Matt Cost, but I am going to remedy that right away.

Highly recommend this perfectly paced mystery.
Edit Review

What a fun read! Velma Gone Awry by Matt Cost takes place during Prohibition in Brooklyn, New York. I love the exciting aura of that time! A detective named 8 Ballo is hired by a wealthy client to locate his missing daughter, Velma. And there the mystery begins. The reader is challenged to determine what is truth and what is not.

The writing is fast-paced novel, and if you are like me, you will be hooked from the start. The story delightfully crosses paths with the rich and the famous: Dorothy Parker, Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald, Coleman Hawkins, Bugsy Siegel, Babe Ruth, as 8 Ballo tries to solve an edge-of-your-seat murder mystery.