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alliepeduto's review against another edition
4.0
DNF…I actually really liked this book! I won’t be able to finish it before my book club, but I would definitely return to it at some point since it was fast paced and interesting. The writing was very wry, and Avery is a great character.
achoward's review against another edition
4.0
Line of Sight open with Russ Avery - former reporter, now PI - helping a dirty cop clean up a mess he's made. So we know, at least, that Avery can cross a moral line.
Avery is subsequently offered a job by Key, a Black activist and friend, to look into the death of Kevin Mathis. Mathis' death was determined to be just another drug-related shooting in a town that never lacks them. The twist on this is that Mathis was in possession of a video that appears to show a police officer shooting a friend of his. Mathis' father, Austin, is convinced his son was also killed by a cop.
Avery, knowing that the release of that video would blow up, requests that they give him a little time to start asking around, and not release the video. The problem for Avery: if he starts asking questions about an officer-involved shooting, his steady stream of "fixing" for cops is going to dry up fairly quickly.
He goes on anyway, his reporter brain fully engaged. Along the way we meet retired cops, active cops, and - thankfully - the really dirty cop who appears in the video. I say thankfully, because sometimes, in books like this, the bad guy doesn't show up until a few pages from the end of the book, and it's impossible to even make an in informed guess of whodunnit.
There's a decent amount of action, and there are protests not unlike current event here in the US as I type this, which bring to mind the Black Live Matter protests, when Key and Mathis' father release the video to the press. Russ manages to get himself beat up, arrested, and given a very stern talking to by his ex-girlfriend, who is still employed at the paper from which he was fired.
Overall, I'm giving it four out of five stars. The opening is a little slow, but once things get moving, we are along for the ride as Avery pokes his nose into places the people in charge don't want him to go.
Thanks to NetGalley and Polis Books for the reading copy.
Avery is subsequently offered a job by Key, a Black activist and friend, to look into the death of Kevin Mathis. Mathis' death was determined to be just another drug-related shooting in a town that never lacks them. The twist on this is that Mathis was in possession of a video that appears to show a police officer shooting a friend of his. Mathis' father, Austin, is convinced his son was also killed by a cop.
Avery, knowing that the release of that video would blow up, requests that they give him a little time to start asking around, and not release the video. The problem for Avery: if he starts asking questions about an officer-involved shooting, his steady stream of "fixing" for cops is going to dry up fairly quickly.
He goes on anyway, his reporter brain fully engaged. Along the way we meet retired cops, active cops, and - thankfully - the really dirty cop who appears in the video. I say thankfully, because sometimes, in books like this, the bad guy doesn't show up until a few pages from the end of the book, and it's impossible to even make an in informed guess of whodunnit.
There's a decent amount of action, and there are protests not unlike current event here in the US as I type this, which bring to mind the Black Live Matter protests, when Key and Mathis' father release the video to the press. Russ manages to get himself beat up, arrested, and given a very stern talking to by his ex-girlfriend, who is still employed at the paper from which he was fired.
Overall, I'm giving it four out of five stars. The opening is a little slow, but once things get moving, we are along for the ride as Avery pokes his nose into places the people in charge don't want him to go.
Thanks to NetGalley and Polis Books for the reading copy.
amyb24's review against another edition
3.0
The story was fast-paced and interesting. I found myself distracted by how poorly the book was edited. There was a recurring error of a missing comma before someone's name in an address that drove me bonkers. "How are you Russ?" "I don't know, I just am."
julieb's review against another edition
5.0
Reporters are the best writers. Sometimes.
"The wind hit hard as soon as I got out of the car, one of those straight through your body gusts that reminds every muscle it's tired and every brain cell that being outside in November is stupid."
Wonderfully Newark (if ever those two words get used next to each other). Didn't get a "Brick City" reference 'til page 23.
I loved it: I hope we meet Russell Avery again. I enjoyed the characters and the work that built them. Almost made me miss Newark.
"The wind hit hard as soon as I got out of the car, one of those straight through your body gusts that reminds every muscle it's tired and every brain cell that being outside in November is stupid."
Wonderfully Newark (if ever those two words get used next to each other). Didn't get a "Brick City" reference 'til page 23.
I loved it: I hope we meet Russell Avery again. I enjoyed the characters and the work that built them. Almost made me miss Newark.
marismill's review against another edition
5.0
Police and lawyer thrillers aren't my favorite genre but I became invested in Avery and his pursuit for truth in a case of possible murder and coverup. It took place in Newark, a city I'm not too familiar with, but I felt like I was there as it had a moment of reckoning with police brutality. I'm excited to see what Avery does in the second novel now that some hard truths about his city have been revealed.
dllman05's review against another edition
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
amyb24's review against another edition
3.0
The story was fast-paced and interesting. I found myself distracted by how poorly the book was edited. There was a recurring error of a missing comma before someone's name in an address that drove me bonkers. "How are you Russ?" "I don't know, I just am."
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