Review: OLD SCORES by David Whish-Wilson

No one writes West Australian crime fiction like David Whish-Wilson. Old Scores once again transports the reader back in time, this time to the 1980's at the beginning of the urban boom. 

Frank Swan, cop turned P.I turned WA Premier's fixer/quasi security guard, returns for a third installment bringing with him all the baggage carried over from Line of Sight and Zero At The Bone. 

Read the review of Zero At The Bone

Read the review of Line of Sight

The Premier, having already committed to furthering the urban sprawl has his sights set on some prime real-estate to develop. Swan is asked to look over the tenders  to see if everything's kosher. What Swan finds, is more than he bargained for. 

With the ghosts of his past returning to haunt him, and the real and ever present threat of Chief of police, Hogan, Swan navigates through a criminal underworld populated by bikies, drug lords, scam artists, ex-cons, police, and politicians to uncover a spate of illegal and unethical tactics by the bidders which, if not carefully handled. could result in dire consequences for the Premier - and Swan himself!

While Swan is the cog that keeps the plot turning, there are a number of threads involving equally interesting characters with unique and deep backstories; Des Foley, the Good Morning Bandit is colorful and not without an element of danger, while Blake Tracker is a young man harshly dealt with by the law who is on the run after a successful jailbreak. While not seemingly connected to one another in the early stages of the novel, Whish-Wilson brings these threads together to form a single cohesive narrative that is a joy to read. I couldn't help but get caught up in Des's mission on behalf of his mother as well as Blake's uncertain future on the run. Old Score envelopes the reader into not only a time and place, but puts them firmly in the mind off the characters. 

Old Scores is a must read for fans of Australian crime fiction and/or crime fiction in general.

Old Scores is published by Fremantle Press and is available for purchase now. Read more from their website:

https://www.fremantlepress.com.au/products/old-scores

Review: STAR WARS: BLOODLINE by Claudia Gray

New cannon setting: after the Aftermath trilogy written by Chuck Wendig and before The Force Awakens. 

Primary characters: Populist senator Leia Organa, Centrist senator Ransolm Casterfo, Leia's assistant and former race pilot Greer Sonnel, x-wing pilot Joph Seastriker, Centrist senator Lady Carise

My brief plot summary: Leia and her team investigate shady dealings reported to the senate involving a new criminal power with unprecedented financial backing who threatens the stability of the New Republic; a more prominent far reaching Hutt enterprise or a covert military power establishing themselves as a prelude to war? 

My Thoughts: Galactic politics mixed with a bit of skulduggery. Leia is very well written and has a distinct voice which separates her from not only the other characters in the book but also from the other Star Wars stories she appears. Leia is older, wiser, and more well rounded in Bloodlines than her appearances in the original trilogy. That said, Han's influence is omnipresent in her actions; drinking, gambling, even sinking an entire city, killing thousands in order to achieve her mission objective (the mass killing surprisingly goes largely unnoticed in the book). 

The heavy emphasis on politics doesn't detract from the action. That old Star Wars galactic adventure feel is perfectly captured and the band of characters accompanying Leia feel like they belong - Joph, Geer, and Casterfo. There's also a nice segue into The Force Awakens thanks to the ambitious Centrist senator Lady Carise.

Bloodline is a fun read. Claudia Gray clearly knows her Star Wars history with references to movies and books spattered throughout. This certainly reads like part of the overall Star Wars story. 

'The sun is setting on the new republic. It is time for the resistance to rise."

Review: THE BRONX KILL by Peter Milligan, James Romberger (Illustrator)

The Bronx Kill promised to be gritty, grimy, and noir. Yet what we get is a deeply rooted family drama that's both twisted and perverted amid a backdrop of a missing persons case that sometimes jumps around a little too much to make sense. 

The art by James Romberger is moody and effective. The styling of each character is distinguishable page to page - you never get lost in the narrative trying to define who is who. For some reason I pictured most of this graphic novel taking place in the day time - even though there are a number of clearly drawn night time sequences. The Bronx Kill, the location, that is, that dumping ground of human waste both organic and non, just feels right in the day time - a seedy decrepit dark contrast to the sunshine. 

Peter Milligan writes a nicely woven family drama than spans generations of adultery and murder. That was interesting. But a little of the spice was lost when in a matter of pages we jump months or even years without a segue or indication in a panel (bar one scene when Martin leaves America for Ireland and returns 4 months later). It can be confusing to the reader. 

The Bronx Kill is a decent read that has a great twist but lacks a little rationale. There is one character, Kerry, who appears late in the book loaded with plot bombs that changes the course of Martin's story. Perhaps if she was introduced earlier, her character would have had more of an impact and the story would've felt more organic. That said, I see what Peter Milligan was trying to do and I liked it. 

I'd rate this Vertigo Crime graphic novel a solid 3.5 / 5.