Dirty Martini by JA Konrath

From the Publisher

Lieutenant Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels, the insomniac Chicago cop with a train wreck of a personal life, has trouble on her hands, and it isn't just because her boyfriend, Latham, wants to get married and she's not sure she's ready. A man in disguise has been visiting restaurants, grocery stores, and fast food places, ingeniously spreading a deadly toxin. Chicago's newest criminal calls himself The Chemist, and he has murder on his mind. When Jack finds Latham unconscious on the floor of their apartment with toxin-laced takeout on the counter, it looks like someone has plans for her. Add to that her dead father who actually isn't dead, her favorite partner, Herb Benedict, contemplating a transfer out of the police station, and a plot to poison all the cops in Chicago, and Jack is in for a scary ride. Dirty Martini is clever, suspenseful, and laugh-out-loud funny.

My Comments:

Dirty Martini is the fourth novel in this addicting series by J.A. Konrath. The books can stand alone, but you’ll appreciate the development of the characters so much more if you start from the beginning with Whiskey Sour.

This book was a departure from the previous books with cringe worthy torture scenes, violence and other serial killer debauchery. If you have a squeamish stomach, you might find this latest installment to be a relief. I personally have never found the violence in this series to be too much. The graphic nature only makes it all the more necessary for Jack to catch the bad guy.

Konrath’s use of witty repartee is a lost art that I look forward to and it’s a wonderful way to ease the readers mind when events get grizzly.

I’m also pleased to note that as a male author, he writes Jack so wonderfully female. Sometimes when an author writes their protagonist from the point of view of the opposite sex, it comes off as stereotypical and even annoying. Jack is strong, but not too much so. She’s everything I love in a female character.

I find these books to be fresh with each new installment. You won’t find a dry, predictable use of formula. You will find fully developed characters that seem to pop off the pages and take up residence in your living room. Which is fabulous in the case of Jack, Herb and Jack’s mother but not so much so in the case of The Chemist and McGlade! I am anxiously awaiting Fuzzy Navel coming out some time next year.

Keep It Or Pass It On? Oh, this is definitely a collectible series. I'm keeping this one close!