Dylan Schaffer - Misdemeanor Man (2004)
Dylan Schaffer’s Misdemeanor Man came out earlier this summer and somehow missed appearing on many readers’ radar screens. This is a shame, as it is not only one of the year’s best debuts, it’s also one of the freshest and most original mysteries to come along in some time.
Gordon Seegerman is an apathetic public defender whose niche is defending people accused of, you guessed it, misdemeanors. What he really cares about, though, is his role as the lead singer of a Barry Manilow tribute band. It is his dream to one day perform before the man himself, a dream which looks as if it might actually come true.
Unfortunately, Gordon’s work interferes with that goal when he gets caught up in a case that requires all of his abilities. A nebbish of an accountant gets arrested for exposing himself in a department store, a crime that seems simple enough from the beginning, but grows ever more complex by the minute.
Schaffer writes with a sly wit and a wonderful gift for characters. The scenes of Gordon interacting with his Alzheimer’s-plagued father and elderly grandfather are so real and touching that one can’t help but be moved.
If you’re tired of the conventional legal thrillers that overflow the bookstore shelves, do yourself a favor and try something with personality and panache. Misdemeanor Man is a gem of a novel that deserves to be discovered.
Posted by David J. Montgomery in Book Reviews | Permalink
