Reviewed by Lit Amri for Readers' Favorite
It's 1920, and Joshua Oates's reputation as a private investigator has improved. His police contact and friend, Detective Dan Burnside of the Boston Police Department, has a case for him: they want him to find a missing tailor in New York City. Sounds simple enough, right? That's definitely not the case, as Oates and Detective Angie Lang find out that certain individuals from the political circle and the underworld are looking for the same man.
Steve Leshin welcomes mystery crime enthusiasts back to the early 20th century. It's the Roaring Twenties, and the hard-drinking private investigator Joshua Oates returns with a new case in A Darker Shade of Greed, a standalone tale perfect for both fans and new readers of the Joshua Oates Adventure series. Sporadic and brief historical facts are conveniently included, ingeniously fortifying the sense of place and pictorial elements. Leshin's writing is splendid; the fast-paced plot flows with an engaging narrative that fuses a mystery theme with the grit of the '20s. The Prohibition Era has no effect on Oates's drinking habit, and his complicated romance with Angie teases readers about their ambivalent future.
Just as its predecessor, the story is not without its prominent line-up of historical figures: Damon Runyon and Bat Masterson once again prove to be Oates's best aides when needed, and American racketeer Arnold Rothstein showcases his notoriety as one of the antagonists. The larger-than-life Babe Ruth is also part of the famous line-up, which will definitely delight baseball fans. Survival and luck are recurring aspects as the cat-and-mouse game tests the characters in an illustrative and suspense-filled way. With a brilliant epilogue, A Darker Shade of Greed is another entertaining sleuth fest from Leshin.
A Rip-Roaring Tale of the Twenties
Simply put, Steve Leshin’s A Darker Shade of Greed is just loads of fun. His tenacious, tough guy private eye Joshua Oates throws himself feet first into the rough-and-tumble organized crime world of 1920 New York City, where gambling is running amuck, Babe Ruth is swatting homers, and prohibition is inspiring innovative liquor runs. Beside the great Bambino, Leshin fills his novel with many lively historical characters, from the journalist Damon Runyon to the old gunslinger Bat Masterson to the shadowy bootlegger Arnold Rothstein, who orchestrated the infamous Black Sox scandal of 1919.
Oates is charged with chasing down a missing tailor, a man who is sewing into suit jackets hidden pockets, pockets that could conceal anything the imagination will allow. Without my giving away too much, the title points the reader in the right direction, as indeed greed provides motives to the down-and-out, the ambitious, and the obsessive gambler.
Oates slowly uncovers clues in chasing down the tailor and the valuable item he may possess, the private detective getting beaten up along the way, but also dishing out his fair share of punishment. A Darker Shade of Greed incorporates many twists and turns, including the return of a major character from this novel’s terrific predecessor Target of Fear. Oates and his girlfriend detective Angie Lang confront one crazy challenge after another, each incident infectiously entertaining. These scenes will lead to a dramatic climax in an iconic location, followed by yet another compelling climax, with no shortage of concomitant injury, mayhem, and destruction.
Indeed, the novel’s ending promises more adventures to come from Leshin and his resilient private eye – ones I heartily look forward to devouring.
