I'm currently on a mystery reading binge. My latest find is Dennis Lehane and what great fun he is. Patrick (never Pat) Kenzie and Angela, Angie, Ange Gennaro are a pair of gritty Boston detectives who always get their man, albeit with a few scars and scares along the way. My favorite character is Bubba, a childhood friend and one bad dude. He is fiercely loyal to Patrick and Angie, and reminds me of the family Rottweiler, very endearing. A Drink Before the War is the first in the series followed by Darkness Take My Hand, Sacred, Gone, Baby, Gone and Prayer for Rain, for those of you who can't stand to read books out of order. I try but don't always succeed. All these are available in paperback, I think he has a new one Mystic only available in hardbound, but at the rate I read I'll wait. Thank god I buy my books at half.com there's a link under reading if you're interested. It is quite easy to buy books at half price or less including the cost of shipping. I've bought many paperbacks for $3.05 including shipping, nice having them delivered to my door. So if you want to or need to save a buck give them a try. Lehane brings humor and a page turning frenzy to his writing. I'm currently reading Gone, Baby, Gone, and yes I've already finished A Prayer for Rain out of order. I'm still chuckling about this line from Gone, Baby, Gone, "So Broussard said slowly, "She did bullshit us." "Didn't want to spoil her fifteen seconds." Poole said. "Her fifteen seconds?" I asked. "In the spotlight," Poole said. "Used to be minutes; these days it's seconds" I knew life was going faster but fifteen seconds is that all we get. The writing is consistent you can count on all of these for a good read.