Thursday, June 25, 2020

Street Music by Timothy Hallinan

First Lines: "OH-ho," Says the woman at the cash register, looking at the baby formula and the stacks of disposable diapers. "How old?"

The most cantankerous member of the small gang that hangs out at the Expat Bar has gone missing under suspicious circumstances. Poke Rafferty has never felt any deep friendship for the man, but he commits to looking for him anyway.

It's a fraught time in the Rafferty household. Rose has given birth to a son. Their cramped apartment is filled with females giving Rose help and companionship. Their adopted daughter Miaow tries to bury her feelings about the newborn baby (how will Rose and Poke feel about her now that they've got a child of their own?). Even Poke isn't sure what kind of father he's going to be.

Yes, the Rafferty household is filled with emotional landmines, but little does Poke know that he's about to meet someone who has the power to tear his family apart.

I know all good things must come to an end, but there are still times that I'd dearly love to postpone an ending or two. This last book in Timothy Hallinan's superb Poke Rafferty series is one of those times. From Poke sleeping on a lumpy couch to the overload of estrogen caused by all of Rose's friends gathering around her to Miaow's concern over her place in the family now that the baby is here, I felt like a member of the family, too.

All along, Hallinan has told us that this series really isn't about Poke; it's all about Miaow and how a small child living on the streets of Bangkok becomes an integral part of Poke's unconventional intercultural family. It's been eight years since Poke and Rose adopted Miaow, and she's grown into a phenomenal young woman. What better way to shed more light on her than to give readers a look into the part of Miaow's story that we've never heard?

Street Music can make you think. It can make you laugh. It can make you cry. I only wish Miaow would become a private investigator or something so we could continue to watch her grow as a person (and see Poke, Rose, and the baby as well). It is a fitting ending to a marvelous series. If you haven't read any of these books, you have to do something about that as soon as possible. Get your hands on A Nail Through the Heart and enjoy yourself all the way through Street Music. You can thank me later.


Street Music by Timothy Hallinan
eISBN: 9781641291248
Soho Crime © 2020
eBook, 384 pages

Private Investigator, #9 Poke Rafferty mystery
Rating: A+
Source: Purchased from Amazon.


8 comments:

  1. This is a bittersweet review, Cathy, as this series is ending. I would love to see what happens to Miaow, too, and see her life unfold. On the other hand, I truly respect Hallinan for ending the series on his terms, when it's a truly excellent series. Plenty of authors would let their series go on for too long. I'm glad that this one was such a well-written finale.

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    1. I respect Hallinan so much, and he's said that he has a lot of characters in his head clamoring to be turned loose. I'm looking forward to meeting those characters.

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  2. I see you've joined Sam in his love of Poke Rafferty. I still haven't read any, but there is still time, and I love that there are no waits when one starts at the beginning of a series. :)

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  3. What can I say? This is what I dream about on my best nights. Thank you so much, not just for the praise but also for your love for the characters -- even grumpy, lost, old Bob.

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    1. I have to admit that the reason grumpy, lost, old Bob's reason for being AWOL didn't surprise me. Perhaps I knew the man better than I thought!

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  4. Great review, Cathy. I haven't been able to read this one yet because I can't imagine not having a new Poke Rafferty book to look forward to. Over the last few years, Poke has made his way onto my list of all-time favorite fictional characters (I feel a blog post coming on), and I'm really going to miss him.

    I know Tim knows what he's doing and what's best for his own writing and creativity, but I am still in the grieving stage.

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    1. You described Street Music as "money in the bank" on your blog, and I wholeheartedly agree with that. I, too, have several books in my bank vault waiting for the right moment to be withdrawn.

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