Harry Starke Book One

Harry Starke Book One

• Tuesday 22 March 2016

• Written by: Blair Howard

  Narrated by: Tom Lennon

  Length: 7 hrs and 25 mins

  Series: Harry Starke, Book 1

  Unabridged Audiobook

  Release Date:11-24-15

  Publisher: Blair Howard

  
  

  Summary

  Why did Tabitha Willard throw herself off the Walnut Street Bridge?
  It's almost midnight, bitterly cold and snowing, when a beautiful young girl, Tabitha Willard, throws herself off the Walnut Street Bridge into the icy waters of the Tennessee. Harry Starke is there, on the bridge. Wrong time, wrong place? Maybe. He tries but is unable to stop her. Thus begins a series of events and an investigation that involves a local United States congressman, a senior lady senator from Boston, a local crime boss, several very nasty individuals, sex, extortion, high finance, corruption, and three murders. Harry has to work his way through a web of deceit and corruption until finally...Well, as always, there's a twist in the tale - several in fact.
  Who is Harry Starke?
  Harry Starke is a private detective, a big fish in a small pond. He's a tough individual with a past, a conscience, and friends in high places. He's single, successful, wealthy, a womanizer, well-educated, and he will hurt you if he needs to. This book is the first in the series of Harry Starke novels.

  Review

  First of all, despite sex and violence being mentioned in the blurb I don't believe many would find it too disturbing or distasteful to read, it's all pretty mild stuff.
  

  Harry had tried to save the girl, his efforts failed. While he was waiting for the police to arrive he did what any P.I. would do, he went through her handbag, what he found there among the contents aroused his curiosity.
  Though everybody agreed that Tabitha had taken her own life, nobody could offer a reason for why she would do such a thing. Harry, feeling that something bad was going on made it his business to find out what had driven her to such desperate measures. Little could anyone know of how complex and twisted the road to truth would become!
  
  

  Harry has contacts, lots of them, good people and bad people and he makes full use of them all, including his wealthy father. These diverse characters makes for some interesting interactions which, in turn, makes good reading. I'm not quite sure what to make of Harry as he comes across as a really nice guy with that Southern gentlemanly way of speaking, yet he seems to have no qualms about using a bit of violence against those who cross him.
  
  

  There's a bit of complicated romancing going on in Harrys' life too, it's almost off with the old love and almost on with the new. Believe me, he met one of his ladies in a most unusual and interesting way.
  I thoroughly enjoyed this book as it's the really good and solid type of P.I. fiction that I love and I intend to read more, it will be interesting to discover a little of Harrys' true character, and read more of his adventures.
  
  

  Narrator

  I don't know who chose Tom Lennon to play Harry, but they could not have made a better choice. I can't fault him, the pace and rhythmn were spot on and he has one of those voices and way of speaking that could convince you of anything. He certainly has mastered the art of nuance, with just the subtlest change in speech Harry goes from friendly guy to your worst enemy, and it's this smallest change of delivery that creates such authenticity. Fabulous narration, Tom Lennon aced this high quality production.
  Audiobook provided by the narrator, author or publisher in return for an honest review