David Myles Robinson

I must confess, it was the tropical cover that made me pause and check out the book. Then, the blurb mentions that it is based ‘somewhat on bizarrely true events’, I had to read it.

I have not read any of the previous books in the series and I don’t feel like it impacted my enjoyment of Tropical Scandal, though I always recommend beginning at the beginning, if you can. It helps to keep from stumbling over references to earlier books.

The descriptive writing made it easy to visualize the intriguing characters. The storyline is in depth, convoluted, twisting and turning, keeping me reading, because there was no way this was going to be an easy mystery for me to solve. I don’t read a lot of legal thrillers, but David Myles Robinson led me through the investigation and court proceedings, step by step.

Greed runs rampant. Flawed characters abound. Some I cared for, others I think get their just desserts. All in all, I enjoyed my time in Hawaii and would love to visit again.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Tropical Scandal by David Myles Robinson.

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It's January 2021, after the most awful 2020, so the Hawaiian setting of this courtroom drama was a welcome contrast to our horrid miserable wintry British weather: sand, warm sunshine, glistening waves and jolly Hawaiian shirts. The backdrop really cheered me up!

However, there's a tragedy in the folds of the brightly coloured shirts and holiday weather: a medical procedure gone wrong, leaving a patient (Giselle) in a vegetative state. The grieving husband (Manny) wants to sue for malpractice. Pancho Gonzalez is the man to take on the job. Despite being a criminal defence lawyer, losing three cases in a row means he's got to up his game somehow. Not only that, Manny and Giselle are old friends and like family to him. All in all, time to add another string to his bow. But then it all goes a bit pear-shaped when one of the attending doctors dies suddenly and Manny is accused of his murder. Pancho not only has to prove Manny's innocence but also has to win the malpractice case.

What a well-written, well-edited (oh, how that delights me!) medical legal thriller. It's sharp, well-dialogued, well-characterised. I'm overloading the 'wells' here, but this had me firmly engaged from the start to the twist-in-the-tale finish. I even learnt a few Hawaiian words and phrases along the way.

A smart, polished and very accomplished novel. Mr Myles has taken up residence in my 'read more of' list.… (más)

This was a powerful story, one that really shows how the past can reverberate into the present. Although the book starts off a little slow, you soon find yourself caught up in Russel's story. Centered around a time when the US was going through major upheaval, it's hard not to have your heart race a little faster at times. It's amazing what secrets even the most seemingly ordinary life can hide, and Robinson masterfully weaves an emotional tale that will keep you turning pages until the very end.… (más)

When Cody Blaze meets his father, Russell, for lunch he has no way of knowing it will be the last time he sees him alive. A few days later, Russell is killed. It appears he fell asleep while returning from some out-of-town business and drove off the highway.

After the funeral, Cody is at the family home consoling his mother when he discovers a letter addressed to him in his father’s home office. The letter is written by Russell and discloses that if Cody is reading it, he didn’t die accidentally as it may appear. He’s been murdered.

In the letter, his father entreats Cody to read his unfinished memoir not with the intention of discovering “the motive for my death and the probable identity of my murderer”, but because “there’s so much about my life you never knew about, much of which leads up to this moment of my demise”.

As Cody begins to read the memoir, he discovers he never knew the details about his father’s early life, a life filled with violence and tragedy.

Russell Blaze grew up in the sixties and his memoir is steeped in the hippy counter-culture of the time as well as the eras’ turbulent politics. But it’s his own family members who are the most troubling including his younger brother, Leo, who when still a juvenile murdered their abusive stepfather.

Russell goes on to become a successful journalist, marry a black woman and have a child, while his brother, once out of prison becomes a proponent of white supremacy and lives a marginalized life of hate and violence.

Fate sets the two of them on dramatically different journeys only to converge with deadly consequences.

On the surface, Words Kill is a murder mystery and, in that regard, its plot is somewhat contrived. However, author David Miles Robinson has offered us much more than a whodunnit. He’s written a book that showcases the big issues of that time in American including the War in Vietnam and others that still resonate today including the prevalence of post-traumatic stress syndrome among veterans, alcohol and drug addiction, and particularly racism. He also digs deep into a dysfunctional family dynamic and reveals how damaging events in early life can manifest into catastrophic results years later.

I particularly enjoyed this book because of Robinson’s realistic take on interracial relationships as well as his authentic depiction of the dark side of the hippy lifestyle. It wasn’t all sunshine peace, and flowers during the Summer of Love.… (más)