Not many people have gotten the best of private detective Brett Cornell. After all he is one unscrupulous bastard who is smarter, tougher and better looking then everyone around him and he always gets the ladies. There is one man who did get the best of him and his name is Gil Bailey. Along with his buddy “Big Bull” Sean O’ Rourke, they scarred Brett for life. Brett wants revenge and gets his chance when Gil challenges him to a charity boxing match. Can Brett keep up with the younger and stronger Gil or will he be left with psychological scars that will never heal?

To make things a little more complicated, Brett also gets hired by Melanie Foster to find Stacey Ashton. Melanie believes Stacey stole her husband and ran off to Florida and Melanie wants her brought back so she can teach Stacey a lesson. As Brett researches the case he finds out that Stacey may have been murdered and her body may be hidden close by.

Brett Enters The Square Circle by David D’Aguanno is the fifth book in the Brett Cornell mystery series. All the books in this series are stand alone stories and you don’t have to read the others to enjoy it. This book has some funny lines from Brett but there is also a good story and some great characters.

A couple of reviews I saw for Brett Enters The Square Circle called it a “light read” and another one said that “Brett is annoying and he overshadows the other characters.” I couldn’t disagree with these statements more. I felt the story was deep and all the characters came across as interesting including the minor characters. For instance you hear about Melanie Foster’s husband from her point of view but then you really get to know her husband and feel sympathy for him. He isn’t in the story for long but I liked seeing how different he was from Melanie’s description.

Another character in the story that is more than he appears is Brett himself. He comes across as dumb and egotistical but if you pay attention you see that there is more to him then meets the eye. As the story moves along you see why he is the way he is, you also see that he’s a good detective he is and cares for his girlfriend even though he can’t show it.

The characters are the best part of the book but I also like how the mystery unfolds. The mystery gets deeper and more intriguing as it moves along and I was surprised at the conclusion. The boxing match story was great as well because it was more than just a match, it was about Brett dealing with the fact that he may not be top dog anymore.

Brett Enters The Square Circle works on a lot of levels, probably the best part is the humor in it. Like when Brett gets his way on an airplane and when he takes a five dollar bill from a cop, his dialogue also makes this book worth buying. I love how the Brett Cornell series of books seems to get better as they go on. I could not put this book down and I’m looking forward to seeing what is in store for Brett in his next four books. ( )