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Tilt-A-Whirl    by Chris Grabenstein Amazon.com order for
Tilt-A-Whirl
by Chris Grabenstein
Order:  USA  Can
Carroll & Graf, 2005 (2005)
Hardcover

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* *   Reviewed by Mary Ann Smyth

Looking for a good read? A mystery, but nothing too grim? Maybe with a little bit of fun and one-liners thrown in to heighten the pleasure? A read with a surprising ending? Believe me, you can't go wrong with Chris Grabenstein's Tilt-A-Whirl.

Twenty-four year-old Danny Boyle is a summer policeman in a resort town on the New Jersey shore at the height of the season. He patrols Sea Haven with his partner John Ceepak, a former MP just back from duty in Iraq. Danny doesn't mind not having a gun resting comfortably on his hip. Summer duty doesn't require drastic measures. Or does it? A billionaire entrepreneur is found murdered in the tilt-a-whirl at the town's amusement park. His twelve-year-old daughter, who witnessed the crime, is subsequently kidnapped.

Danny views his partner with awe and respect until he accuses the man of killing a witness. The action moves at a good clip as suspense mounts. The characters are just great - the crime scene investigator's devouring of a sandwich would turn anyone's stomach. And for a man who experienced the horrors of Iraq, Ceepak is surprisingly gentle and calm, accomplishing his goal with patience and good police work. In this first of a new series, Chris Grabenstein offers just about anything the reader might want in a mystery. And does it well.

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