Created by Seamus Heffernan
When we meet him in his debut novel, Naplam Hearts (2018), THADDEUS GRAYLE is an American ex-pat living in London, England who’s made a life for himself, running a “fairly lucrative” detective agency out of a two-floor walkup in Shoreditch.
Only problem? He’s bored stiff.
Recently divorced, estranged from his fourteen-year-old daughter Amy (modern private eyes are incapable of fathering sons) and no longer drinking, he feels like he’s spinning his wheels both professionally and personally. He’s tired of following wayward spouses–his office temp Charlotte and ex-cop Francis Ruddick do much of the work anyway–and his new life as an eligible, swinging bachelor isn’t exactly working for him either.
And then salvation of a sort comes a-knocking, in the guise of a case that’s actually challenging. The party-hearty trophy wife of Andrew Claymore, a shipping billionaire and an aspiring politician, has vanished, and it looks like she may have stepped into something far nastier and deadly than either her husband or Grayle expected.
The author doesn’t break any new ground here, but Napalm Hearts was a satisfying and promising debut, a fast-paced read full of pulpy energy, clocking in at just under 160 pages, and the sequel, Ten Grand (2019), isn’t much longer. Apparently Grayle’s learned his lesson, though–he’s chucked the domestics, and tries to make a no-drama living, sticking to insurance work and background checks. Trouble, you could say, is no longer his business. And then it comes walking in the door, waving a big pay-off…
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Born in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Seamus Heffernan has called several places home, including a lengthy stint in London, England. He changed oceans, and currently resides in British Columbia, where he splits his time between Abbotsford, Mission and Vancouver. As a child, he claims that his parents indulged him far too much in his love of comic books, crime TV and pulp novels, and that his writing is how he’s decided to repay them.
UNDER OATH
- “A cool fresh twist on an established genre.”
NOVELS
- Napalm Hearts (2018) | Buy this book | Kindle it!
- Ten Grand (2019) | Buy this book | Kindle it!
Respectfully submitted by Kevin Burton Smith.
