Title: Deadly Catch
Author: E. Michael Helms
Series: Mac McClellan Mysteries (#1)
Date Published: November 12, 2013
Rating: 4/5 stars
Author: E. Michael Helms
Series: Mac McClellan Mysteries (#1)
Date Published: November 12, 2013
Rating: 4/5 stars
Author Bio:
E. Michael Helms is a USMC combat veteran. His memoir of the Vietnam War, "The Proud Bastards," has been called "As powerful and compelling a battlefield memoir as any ever written . . . a modern military classic," and has been in print for over 20 years.
His work has also appeared in the books: Semper Fi: Stories of U.S. Marines from Boot Camp to Battle (Thunder's Mouth Press, 2003); Soldier's Heart: Survivors' Views of Combat Trauma (The Sidran Press, 1995); and Two Score and Ten: The Third Marine Division History (Turner Publishing, 1992).
Book One of his two-part saga of the Civil War, "Of Blood and Brothers," was released in September 2013, with Book Two following in March 2014. The first of his Mac McClellan Mysteries, "Deadly Catch," was published in November 2013. "Deadly Ruse," the second in the series, is scheduled for release November 2014. "The Private War of Corporal Henson," a semi-autobiographical fictional sequel to his memoir, "The Proud Bastards," is due out August 2014.
Helms lives with his wife in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the Upstate region of South Carolina, where they enjoy canoeing, hiking and bird watching.
His work has also appeared in the books: Semper Fi: Stories of U.S. Marines from Boot Camp to Battle (Thunder's Mouth Press, 2003); Soldier's Heart: Survivors' Views of Combat Trauma (The Sidran Press, 1995); and Two Score and Ten: The Third Marine Division History (Turner Publishing, 1992).
Book One of his two-part saga of the Civil War, "Of Blood and Brothers," was released in September 2013, with Book Two following in March 2014. The first of his Mac McClellan Mysteries, "Deadly Catch," was published in November 2013. "Deadly Ruse," the second in the series, is scheduled for release November 2014. "The Private War of Corporal Henson," a semi-autobiographical fictional sequel to his memoir, "The Proud Bastards," is due out August 2014.
Helms lives with his wife in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the Upstate region of South Carolina, where they enjoy canoeing, hiking and bird watching.
Synopsis:
“The first cast of the day turned my dream vacation into a nightmare. . . .”
After twenty-four years in the U.S. Marines, recently retired Mac McClellan is happy to be a civilian again. He is enjoying a leisurely fishing vacation in the Florida panhandle when he hooks a badly decomposed body.
Then, when a bag of rare marijuana is discovered stashed aboard his rental boat, he realizes someone is setting him up to take the fall for murder and drug smuggling. Mac’s plans for a more laid-back life must be put on hold while he works to clear his name as the number one suspect.
Mac launches an investigation with the help of Kate Bell, a feisty saleslady at the local marina with whom he has struck up a promising relationship. Along the way he must butt heads and match wits with local law enforcement officials, shady politicians, and strong-armed thugs from the Eastern Seaboard to sniff out and bring the real smuggler and killer to justice.
After twenty-four years in the U.S. Marines, recently retired Mac McClellan is happy to be a civilian again. He is enjoying a leisurely fishing vacation in the Florida panhandle when he hooks a badly decomposed body.
Then, when a bag of rare marijuana is discovered stashed aboard his rental boat, he realizes someone is setting him up to take the fall for murder and drug smuggling. Mac’s plans for a more laid-back life must be put on hold while he works to clear his name as the number one suspect.
Mac launches an investigation with the help of Kate Bell, a feisty saleslady at the local marina with whom he has struck up a promising relationship. Along the way he must butt heads and match wits with local law enforcement officials, shady politicians, and strong-armed thugs from the Eastern Seaboard to sniff out and bring the real smuggler and killer to justice.
Review:
First off, sorry I haven’t posted in so long. Finals, spring break, and my dad coming home from Afghanistan have left me little time for writing and reading. This month’s book is Deadly Catch: A Mac McClellan Mystery by E. Michael Helms. I give it four stars because allthough it was suspenseful, intriguing, and well written, it just didn’t drag me in. This is probably because, as a teenage girl, I'm not exactly its target audience. It was definitely written for an adult audience, not because it’s steamy or anything, but because of the attitudes of the characters and the voice it’s written in.
Like I said, Deadly Catch was extremely well written, the plot was solid with no holes or random weird things thrown in, and unlike most of the books I’ve read recently, the author actually knew how to spell and use punctuation. (You seriously have no idea how big of a deal this is!) One thing I did not like about the book was that it seemed to lack obvious subplots. Which I happen to LOVE in my reading. The characters lacked depth. They all started out solidly with a good base, but didn’t develop throughout the course of the story. Surprisingly, the character I felt had the most depth and development was Marilyn Harper, a side character. Finally, the ending was a little abrupt. I really would’ve liked an epilogue. All these personal things aside, the book was good, really good.
Although it is a good read, I don’t think a teenaged girl is the target audience for this book. Mac, the main character, tends to use slang that I don’t understand, probably because of the generation gap, which wasn’t a big problem, just confusing. Some of the stranger ones I saw were “slinger” and “wired AC/DC”. My parents are currently debating whether this is referring to an 80’s rock band or an electrical current. There were also plenty of areas in the book that I didn’t connect with such as the time the main character was going to go swimming after a seven dollar fishing lure. Really? For seven dollars, I’d just buy a new one and avoid getting wet.
In conclusion, while not my cup of tea, Deadly Catch was a well written, well thought out book and most of my complaints with it seem to stem from the fact that I’m really in the wrong demographic to enjoy it properly. It would probably better appeal to an audience that’s more like my dad or grandpa. Actually, my dad did start reading it and is extremely excited to finish it.
Like I said, Deadly Catch was extremely well written, the plot was solid with no holes or random weird things thrown in, and unlike most of the books I’ve read recently, the author actually knew how to spell and use punctuation. (You seriously have no idea how big of a deal this is!) One thing I did not like about the book was that it seemed to lack obvious subplots. Which I happen to LOVE in my reading. The characters lacked depth. They all started out solidly with a good base, but didn’t develop throughout the course of the story. Surprisingly, the character I felt had the most depth and development was Marilyn Harper, a side character. Finally, the ending was a little abrupt. I really would’ve liked an epilogue. All these personal things aside, the book was good, really good.
Although it is a good read, I don’t think a teenaged girl is the target audience for this book. Mac, the main character, tends to use slang that I don’t understand, probably because of the generation gap, which wasn’t a big problem, just confusing. Some of the stranger ones I saw were “slinger” and “wired AC/DC”. My parents are currently debating whether this is referring to an 80’s rock band or an electrical current. There were also plenty of areas in the book that I didn’t connect with such as the time the main character was going to go swimming after a seven dollar fishing lure. Really? For seven dollars, I’d just buy a new one and avoid getting wet.
In conclusion, while not my cup of tea, Deadly Catch was a well written, well thought out book and most of my complaints with it seem to stem from the fact that I’m really in the wrong demographic to enjoy it properly. It would probably better appeal to an audience that’s more like my dad or grandpa. Actually, my dad did start reading it and is extremely excited to finish it.
Excerpt:
I covered my mouth and nose with my free hand and kept going, breathing as little and shallow as possible. Just a few feet from my objective I lifted the line out of the water and gave it a light pull. Five feet away, the surface exploded. Hundreds of small fish and blue crabs darted and scurried in every direction. I tripped backward and nearly went under before I somehow regained my footing. My heart was racing, and despite the foul air I grabbed several deep breaths to calm myself. Then I saw it—my lure, embedded in the bleached-white underbelly of a large fish sticking halfway out of the grass.
“You chickenshit,” I muttered, glad no fishing buddies were along to witness my brave reaction to a bunch of scavengers feasting on a dead fish. I turned my head and took another deep breath and covered the few remaining feet as fast as possible. Pulling the line tight, I reached for the lure. My hand froze in midair and I stumbled back again, heart pounding. Christ on a crutch, this was no dead fish! It was a leg—a human leg!
“You chickenshit,” I muttered, glad no fishing buddies were along to witness my brave reaction to a bunch of scavengers feasting on a dead fish. I turned my head and took another deep breath and covered the few remaining feet as fast as possible. Pulling the line tight, I reached for the lure. My hand froze in midair and I stumbled back again, heart pounding. Christ on a crutch, this was no dead fish! It was a leg—a human leg!