World Famous Comics: A Cold Day In Paradise (Alex McKnight Novels)
A Cold Day In Paradise (Alex McKnight Novels)
By: Steve Hamilton Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur Average Rating: Binding: Mass Market Paperback Label: St. Martin's Minotaur Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 320 Publication Date: February 15, 2000
In an unprecedented literary event, Steve Hamilton's A Cold Day In Paradise has hit mystery's Double Play, winning the two most prestigious honors in the business-- the Edgar and Shamus Awards for Best First Novel. Now, open its covers and see for yourself why this extraordinary novel has galvanized the literary and mystery community as no other book before it...
Other than the bullet lodged less than a centimeter from his heart, former Detroit police officer Alex McKnight thought he had put the nightmare of his partner's death and his own near-fatal injury behind him. After all, Maximilian Rose, convicted of the crimes, has been locked in the state pen for years, But in the small town of Paradise, Michigan, where McKnight has traded his badge for a cozy cabin in the woods, a murderer with Rose's unmistakable trademarks appears to be back to his killing ways. With Rose locked away, McKnight can't understand who else would know the intimate details of the old murders-- not to mention the signature blood-red rose left on his doorstep. And it seems like it'll be a frozen day in Hell before McKnight can unravel the cold truth from a deadly deception in a town that's anything but Paradise.
A Cold Day in Paradise Another gripping read by Steve Hamilton. Alex Mcnight as the ex-cop, private investigator with a past which refuses to go away.
Seamless prose combined with an excellent plot makes it an ideal escape for a train or plane journey. No less dramatic, is the backdrop of a fierce Canadian winter. Hamilton creates the ideal atmosphere for this thriller. And snappy dialogue coupled with briliant characterisation keeps the reader absorbed.
McNight is a well-rounded, credible hero who evokes the reader's sympathy as well as admiration. After the first page , you just want to read on.
Alex McKnight is a P.I. Worth Investigating "A Cold Day In Paradise" is Steve Hamilton's first novel in his Alex McKnight series (there are currently 7 books). It was a good, quick read. This book won the 1997 St. Martin's Press/PWA Award for Best First Private Eye Novel, and it was an award well deserved.
Alex McKnight spent 8 years as a police officer in Detroit, Michigan. That career ended when Alex and his partner Franklin met up with a man named Rose, a delusional pyscho who killed Franklin and shot Alex 3 times in the chest.
Alex moved to Paradise (the town, not the idyllic meaning of the word) after his near death experience to live and run the rental of hunting cabins built by his father years ago. He is convinced by local lawyer Lane Uttley to get his private investigator license and start working cases for him.
When his friend, Edwin Fulton, calls him in the middle of the night to a murder scene, Alex gets involved in his biggest case yet. A local bookie has been killed, and another turns up dead within a few days. Alex starts getting calls and letters hand-delivered from Rose, which shouldn't be possible since Rose is supposed to be in jail for the rest of his life.
Then Edwin disappears, and even though his body has not been found yet, Alex feels responsible for his death. Can Alex figure out how Rose could be out murdering men when he is supposedly safely locked up in maximum security before anyone else ends up dead?
Hamilton did a great job keeping his characters intersting and keeping the action moving along at a quick pace. I am excited to see what happens next to Alex in "Winter of the Wolf Moon". If you enjoy P.I. mysteries and haven't had the pleasure of reading "A Cold Day in Paradise", I suggest you pick it up and give it a try.
More U.P. please No need for me to retell an excellent novel. The author should have focused a little more on the U.P. setting, had he done so I would have given it 5 stars. I am looking forward to reading the sequel.
Not enough U. P. and to much forced anger... Being from the U.P. it is always a pleasure to stumble across a book with ties to my home. However, this was not the case with "A Cold Day in Paradise." This story could have taken place anywhere. The U. P. is a unique location that could have had more significance to the story or its characters. I was also disappointed in the continuous anger of each of the characters. As a reader I did not feel I was given enough information or background to understand or believe where this anger was coming from. As one previous review stated the characters seemed "flat." I would agree with this and in being more specific I would add it is more enjoyable and believable to watch a character moving into a state of anger, possibly struggling with it internally ... these characters were simply flat angry all the time.
An ex-Catcher ex-Detroit Cop in the UP of Michigan Alex McKnight is a well drawn character who, by the end of the book, you feel you really get to know. Hamilton spends a good amount of time having him ruminate about his life without making it sound like a soliloquy from a Shakesperian play. He has had an interesting life so far, minor league catcher (couldn't hit a curve ball) then Detroit Cop (on 3/4 pension after being shot three times by a maniac who killed his partner). Now he's trying to make a living running a hunting camp in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
Suddenly one day it appears that the man who shot him, and is doing life plus 12 years in a maximum security penitentiary (from which no one has ever escaped) is leaving him typewritten letters. The story then unfolds featuring the lawyer who got him to get his PI license, a wimpy rich guy, his wife (who he had an affair with), the rich guys mother, the chief of the Sault Ste. Marie (Soo) Police, a State Detective and a bunch of card players at his local bar.
The story is interesting and the ending has a Ian Rankin/John Rebus feel to it. Nothing is completely rapped up but Alex has the knowledge that he has been able to bury some of his demons, while donating some of them to some one who deserves them more.
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