Plugged. . .but it’s his scalp

The latest book in my A – Z Book Challenge is Plugged by Eoin Colfer.  You probably know him as the author of the Artemis Fowl children’s books.

This is a book about murder, corruption and hair loss in New Jersey.

I heard about this book on the Book Show and that is what prompted me to buy it, and I am glad that I did. I had several laugh out loud experiences during the reading even though it is what you would call a crime noir book. The book reminded me of Elmore Leonard and Raymond Chandler.

The protagonist is a hair challenged ex army sergeant.  “Once I have hair I’ll be happy.” At least that’s what Daniel McEvoy tells himself.

As doorman at a seedy night club in New Jersey, dealing with unpleasant customers, a psychotic neighbour and a receding hairline are all part of Dan’s daily grind.  Dan’s a hard man with a soft centre and he’s been framed for a crime he didn’t commit.  Drawn into a deadly chain of events, his friend goes missing and his part-time girlfriend is killed, where a cop-killing female cop becomes his only ally and he makes an enemy of ruthless drug-dealer, Dan discovers that his battle against baldness is the least of his worries.

This book was enjoyable and I liked the fact that there was humour amongst the torture and violence.  As the cover says “If you loved Artemis Fowl. . . It’s time to grow up.” There is murder and sex and the situations are as crazy as they are gruesome, though they aren’t too graphic. Dan develops as a character in the book and by the conclusion of the novel I wanted to find out even more about him. I look forward to more exploits of Daniel McEvoy. I’m assuming his scalp will be well and truly plugged by then.

Plugged is what I would call a fast moving crime thriller. A great read.

You can listen to a podcast of an interview with Eoin Colfer talking about Plugged on the ABC Bookshow.