Break Shot. Darren Musial. Amazon Digital Services, Inc., April 20, 2015, Trade Paperback and Kindle, 181 pages.
Reviewed by David Laipple.
The next time you’re in the mood for a murder mystery, read Break Shot, and get to know a Chicago hero who carries an iPhone but takes care of business like a rough-and-tumble hero should. Max Deacon is a former Special Forces captain whose occupational skills transfer in civilian life to a position in a Chicago pool hall. He is part bartender, baby-sitter, and enforcer and he accepts whatever challenge comes his way with some backup from his friend and fellow Iraq veteran, Moose Delevan.
Max knows he has a few flaws, but he wouldn’t consider one of them his sense of justice and willingness to act on it. A good deed attracts the attention of the seedy underside of Chicago, and his skills are tested when he becomes a murder suspect for the Chicago Police and a kidnap victim of the real murderer. Max proves the equal of every test, though, as he maneuvers the kidnapper into one last shoot-out and the seedy kingpin into the arms of the Wisconsin State Police.
The author, Darren Musial, informs his debut novel with a black belt in Karate and the heart of a poet. Darren writes Break Shot in 45 fast-paced chapters that keep the reader engaged. It is a fun read that reminds us there are sub-cultures of desperation in a big city.