Dangerous Games: A Jack Liffey Mystery    by John Shannon Order:  USA  Can Carroll & Graf, 2005 (2005) Hardcover Read an Excerpt     Reviewed by J. A. Kaszuba Locke Jack Liffey is a private investigator, professional searcher and saver of lost children. His girlfriend, Sergeant Gloria Ramirez, is with the Los Angeles Police Department. Gloria's eighteen-year old niece Luisa Wilson has vanished from a small reservation, the Owens Valley Paiute Indian rancherio. Luisa had threatened to run away to the porn world, and was determined to find a protector. (In her diary, Luisa writes, 'My protector came to talk to me & he didn't even ask for sex tonight. I wonder if this is a compliment to my dignified manner or if I look too Indian for him to want me.') Luisa finds what she is looking for, more or less, as she is shifted from one 'motley band' to another, including money-making, low-lifes in the phone-sex/porn industry, gang members, and filmers of brutality. Sgt. Gloria asks Jack to look into Luisa's disappearance, beginning with a visit to the reservation and a talk with Luisa's mother. While Jack is gearing up to search for Gloria's niece, his sixteen-year old daughter Maeve takes a bullet in a gang drive-by shooting, when Jack is working in the yard. Jack doesn't tell the police that he can identify the shooter (in fact, he has already recognized Thumb Estrada from a police line-up), and sets out to find Thumb on his own. A twist to the search is that Jack offers the kid a chance to redeem himself by caring for the lawn at Jack's (Gloria's) place. Thumb cannot explain why he shot a round of bullets, and says it was just something that happened with no intention of hitting anyone. Jack Liffey thinks he's got a good shot at putting a youngster on the right track. Along with the main events, the author inserts off-the-track happenings, such as the fellows who are making brutality films to sell, and a famed porno queen 'Little Deer' who is found to be ill with AIDS. This book isn't really a mystery, but rather a collection of slightly connected situations, without plot, character build-up, or specific direction. Dangerous Games will be enjoyed by those curious about the world of gangs, brutality and porn movie-makers, crooks and drugs, and pimps. Though I was touched by reading of Jack Liffey's efforts to make a difference in some lives, I found the most exciting part of the story to be a wildfire that puts Jack and Luisa at risk late in the novel. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Mystery books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews