Steve Goble

A P.I. Read



I am so sorry I am late to this party. When I requested this book I had no idea this was a series but I loved Ed as a character. Ed is a
a private investigator specializing in finding missing kids. His expertise is, unfortunately, fine-tuned as a result of his professional experiences as a detective in New York City and as a detective/sniper in Ohio. His failure to rescue a missing girl in New York led him to Ohio and the Sheriff's Department but that career move was short-lived. Another missing kid case and Ed had operated a bit too independently so he decides it is time to operate solo.
Teenage Jimmy is missing and his parents, very religious folk, are desperate to find him. They cannot imagine why Jimmy has run away but it doesn't take lone for Ed to discover that Jimmy's truth may not be easily accepted by his parents, especially his dad. Ed utilizes a variety of strategies to locate Jimmy and he soon is in the crosshairs of some dangerous and vengeful drug dealers. This is so good that I read it in three hours. I do not want to give anything away but I will say that it is a great fast paced read.
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Go Find Daddy by Steve Goble is a recommended investigative novel and the third book featuring PI Ed Runyon.

Ed Runyon is hired by the wife of a man wanted for murder. She wants Ed to find him. However, the case isn't quite as simple as that. A cop was found murdered in rural Ohio on Donny Blackmon’s property and Donny has disappeared with no way for anyone to find him. His wife needs to find him because she has just learned that their daughter is dying from cancer. Once the young girl asks Ed to find her Daddy, Ed knows he's taking the case.

You can still follow the plot and won't feel as if you are missing too much backstory, but as the third book in the series, it might behoove readers to start with the earlier two novel, City Problems and Wayward Son. Additionally, Ed can be a bit of an annoying character and his personality may not endear him to some readers. All in all, this is a decent PI novel, not a favorite, but not awful. Perhaps I would have liked it more if it was just a story and kept current events out of the plot. This element to the narrative is tiresome and dates the novel immediately, before it is even released.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Oceanview Publishing via NetGalley.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2023/07/go-find-daddy.html… (más)

This was an entertaining, quickly-read novel (under 300 pages) that, in my mind, was written in a slightly noirish way. It was filled with twists and turns, and the culprit sort of (but not fully) surprised me.

I liked this, and I would have liked it, even more, had the author not stooped to adding politics into the pot. I wish authors would keep their politics to themselves, but in a way, I could see how this might have been germane to the story. I also didn't like the fact that the author could not keep Ed's manner of speaking- consistent.

All in all, this was well worth a read, and had I known then what I know now, I would have picked up the first two books in this series just to get the feel for the characters. It can certainly be a stand-alone, as I had no trouble following things.

A good book for a beach read or a vacation plane ride, just not if you are traveling to Ohio lol.

*ARC supplied by the publisher - Oceanview, the author, and NetGalley.… (más)

Picking up a few months after City Problems and shortly before the Covid outbreak in the United States, Ed Runyon is no longer a Mifflin County Sheriff’s Deputy. He has started Whiskey River Investigations and, as a private investigator, will focus on missing kids. Missing kid cases are important to him and a major reason why he left New York.

Jimmy Zachman is missing. His parents, Tammy and Bob Zachman meet with Mr. Runyon and are doing everything they can to hold it together. The 15-year-old has been missing around 24 hours and they have no idea why he left. While they claim they have no idea, but Ed Runyon sees a couple of possible reasons right from the start. But, he is not there to discuss religion or politics. He is there to find their missing son.

The search for Jimmy will take Runyon far from Jimmy’s home on Poplar Street in Ambleton, Ohio. It will involve technology, a chess app, and a lot more, in a complex case where nothing is as it seems.

As this the second book in the series that began with City Problems, it would be best to have read that book first. Not only do several of the recurring characters return here, time has passed, and some situations have changed a little bit. Additionally, events of the first book are referenced repeatedly and ultimately play a role here, so read in order.

Wayward Son: An Ed Runyon Mystery is a good one. Like City Problems, the read is highly recommended.

My reading copy came from the Kleberg Rylie Branch of the Dallas Public Library System.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2023… (más)