Debs Kafka finds trouble has entered his life with a vengeance.
His relationship with his girlfriend, Nicole Vermeer, is
in jeopardy. He’s unsure if the academic life he has
chosen is right for him or if he would rather pursue his
dream of being a professional baseball player even though
he only has to finish his thesis to get a PhD in criminology.
And then his department chair, who he liked and respected,
is murdered.
He’s soon given a chance to find out if his dream
of being a baseball player is the right choice for him.
Yet he can’t stop wondering who killed his department
chair and find’s himself looking into his death even
though the police already have a suspect in custody who
has confessed to the murder. Kafka doesn’t believe
the confession suspecting that there is more to the story
than just a simple robbery gone bad.
He soon has more suspects than he knows what to do with
while trying to deal with his shaky romance, finish his
thesis and pursue his dream of playing professional baseball.
His search for the truth takes him from the streets of San
Francisco, to the scandal filled Catholic Church, into the
workings of crime & punishment and deep into the locker
rooms of major league baseball. He finds nothing is as it
seems, his world is turned upside down and a killer is setting
their sites on him.
When I first read the description of the book I thought
how could someone possibly combine the worlds of academia,
baseball and the Catholic Church. Yet Robert Elias has managed
to do this quite well creating a fascinating and informative
mystery filled with subtle humor and astute observations.
Some people might find reading it a bit dry in places due
to it’s political observations, reference to the Catholic
Church and it's problems, baseball trivia and observations
about crime & it's prevention in the current day; yet
I found it to be very well written and insightful. It is
a well plotted mystery, with interesting characters and
a fascinating back drop of modern day San Francisco.
Debs Kafka is a character you will want to read more about.
He is quite the Renaissance man being well read, scholarly,
with opinions about the world around him and with an almost
obsessive fascination for baseball.
ABOUT THE REVIEWER
Andrea Maloney is a stay at home mom and jewelry designer who loves
to read. Her favorite books are mysteries, suspense and thrillers.
She lives in Massachusetts with her husband, two daughters and one
large cat.
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