The Second Girl

Frank Marr is an ex-cop, now working as a Private Investigator, sometimes for a Defense Attorney. Frank is a functioning drug addict ... but no one seems to know. He's very good at hiding things. He's also very good at breaking into drug houses to keep his supply of drugs and money. It's during one of these runs that he accidentally finds a young girl being kept prisoner. He frees her, does some hocus pocus, spins a well-thought out story and turns the girl over to the attorney he works for. It so happens that another girl has gone missing .... she attended the same school and her parents hire Marr to find her. This book is full of drugs, dope runners, errand boys, syringes full of whatever, lots of what I will call street language. There is also a lot of graphic violence ... and not all of it is done by the bad guys. There are people killed ... guilty and innocent alike. On the upside, I actually like Frank Marr. He is good-hearted to a point .. he wants to be the good guy, but he crosses way too many lines. His drug addiction is a huge problem ... he's always thinking about what he has, how much he needs to maintain during the day, or on a stakeout. There are other characters who play a role. Although most of them are drug dealers, or thugs who are buying the drugs, there are a couple of cops that don't cross those lines that Marr does. They seemingly are intelligent and do their jobs well, but they accept whatever story Marr tells them without batting an eyelash. From the book blurb, this is the start of a new series. I didn't love this book, but I am intrigued at what Marr will do from here. I will, most likely, take a look at the next one.. but no promises after that. I gave it 3.5 stars - mainly for the distinctively unique storyline. My thanks to the author / Mulholland Books / NetGalley who provided a digital copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

Pretty fast-paced read, keeps you interested for the most part.