12 March 2008
Strike Dog: A Woods Cop Mystery, Joseph Heywood
Posted by daverichey under: Book Reviews .
TITLE: Strike Dog: A Woods Cop Mystery
AUTHOR: Joseph Heywood
PUBLISHER: The Lyons Press
CONTACT:
The Lyons Press
PO Box 480
Guilford, CT 06437
WEBSITE: Lyons Press
COST: $19.95 + postage
ISBN: 978-1-59921-160-2 (for bookstore ordering)
Joe Heywood has written what I feel to be his best novel.. His characters are born of mixed nationalities found in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula where the names are as difficult to spell as they are to pronounce, but protagonist Grady Service, manages it very well while dealing with a cast of characters as real as any in the North Woods.
Service’s girl-friend and son are killed in a truck accident, and then the story begins to unfold as a Wisconsin conservation officer is killed in brutal fashion. This book has more twists and turns than most U.P. back roads, and Service is drawn into the investigation even before he has a chance to mourn his personal losses and that of the Wisconsin officer who was his friend.
The FBI enters the case and Service us thrust into a less-than-friendly working relationship with a female FBI agent. She informs Service soon after a Missouri officer is killed that a serial killer, one who has now killed game wardens in every continental state except Michigan. The killer targets the No. 1 fish cop in each state, and a list is recovered and they soon learn Grady Service’s name is the only remaining person to be kiled.
This is a roller-coaster ride of suspense, a touch of trout fishing, and an ingenious plot that keeps readers guessing until the last few pages. Service becomes the Strike Dog – the lead officer — into a deadly possible confrontation with the killer. He is backed up by his Vietnam partner and an agent from Missouri.
The story line is crisp and clean, as is Heywood’s wonderful writing, and some of the characters enter and leave the story as the case develops. It is a guaranteed page-turner, and it kept me up all night. Service, trained under grueling conditions in Nam, begins the tracking of a killer who uses a method developed over decades, and it took Service to figure out who the killer was, and how he operates. The final result, the last twist is this book, comes with some help from an unlikely source.
Heywood weaves in just enough fishing information, and woods lore, that allows the reader to fully understand that this man may be sitting in a warm room when he writes his books, but his heart and soul is in the Upper Peninsula, a place he dearly loves. This is the fifth in a critically acclaimed series of Woods Cop mysteries.
This is a book that any outdoorsman will enjoy, and it points out in clear detail why Michigan’s conservation officers (and those of the other states) need more help from their respective state governments. This tale is set in Michigan, as are the others, and readers will recognize many locations if they read closely. It’s a real winner!
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