The Boy From Biloxi by John Grisham

 

The rivalry began as a friendship between two men. Lance, a well-known figure in the Biloxi as the Boss through bar, gambling, and brothel. He was the king of the underworld, with plenty of money and power, and now he was grooming his oldest son to learn the business. It makes Biloxi a rough town with a lot of crime.

While Jesse, a lawyer who running for District Attorney. His reputation was stellar. He was considered above reproach. He had known Lance his entire life but they were living and working in different worlds. The friendship was about to change because he would be in the middle of a rough campaign of good versus evil.

The conflict of the story is when he put away Lance to prison. The worst is yet to come, it was time for revenge. The Boys From Biloxi is a dramatic story that spotlights family drama, friendship, corruption, organized crime, court scene and lawsuits is above all how education, hardship n good deeds always win.  I'm always nervous before reading a predictable ending but JG always grabs my attention with his compelling courtroom scenes. This is a slow-burn legal thriller that indicates the author's professional expertise with a large cast of characters. I give 4.5 ⭐️

Thanks to @definitelybooks #pansing for the review copy. Opinions are my own 💙

*Available at all major bookstores in Singapore and Malaysia and their online stores

Death Of A Bookseller by Bernard J. Farmer

 

Sergeant Jack Wigan just met Michael Fisk, a book-runner in an inconvenient state. Being a book-runner is like searching, picking up and selling rare/ first-edition/ most wanted books to other dealers or collectors. Instantly, they became close friends. Soon after that, Fisk was found stabbed surrounding his book in his own house. It was unlikely that he had any enemies other than books were the motive. From the time of his murder, Fredrick Hampton was accused. He happened to quarrel with the dead man and was seen at the Fisk's house. Fred denied it and claimed someone has framed him.

Sergeant Jack Wigan felt the man was innocent but hard to justify the feeling because there are so many loopholes in the case. The police had arrested the wrong person because circumstances seemed to implicate him. Wigan tried to find out general movements on the day of Fisk's death. He convinced all connected with the trade are suspect.

There are several potential suspects indeed.  I did think I had the ending all worked out, but obviously, I'm wrong. It does make the flow a little unbelievable. But guess what, it's fiction though. Originally published on January 1, 1956. This is the second of four detective novels that Farmer wrote featuring detective Sergeant Jack Wigan series.

Thanks to @netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for earc. My opinions are my own.

The Yellow Rambutan Tree Mystery by Ovidia Yu

An entertaining story that is set in Singapore after the Japanese Occupation. The 4th instalment of The Mystery Tree series centred on Su Lin and her family can be read as a standalone. Before the war, she helped the police solve several cases as an interpreter n local liaison duties. 

It begins with a friend, Botak Beng who was looking for her Uncle Chen regarding an important matter and was found stabbed in the drain nearby their neighbor's house. It's the third day of Chinese New Year, and no visits are made nor are visitors received as it is believed that evil spirits roam the earth. It couldn't have been a coincidence that Botak had been killed after he'd tried to see her uncle. Or probably because Uncle Chen has been cutting ties with his former underworld connections like smuggling and protection rackets. 

The story explored relationships between families who still believed in superstitions and taboos as the way of local life. Things weren't easy but wouldn't be so bad. They working out in this new post-war world. I enjoyed the pacing and the atmosphere that the author evoked which surprised me and was well on its way.  It's worth reading and I give 4.5 ⭐️ 

Thanks to @definitelybooks #pansing for the review copy. Opinions are my own 💙 

*Available at all major bookstores in Singapore and Malaysia and their online stores

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