Review: The Zen Detective by Devorah Fox

The Zen Detective by Devorah Fox

(I received a free copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.)

On the road to Zen enlightenment, homicide detective Will Mansion takes a seductive detour down the path to perdition.
When a bust goes terribly wrong, Paradise City detective Will Mansion nearly dies while saving his partner. On leave, Will seeks relief from post-traumatic stress disorder through Zen meditation and abstinence. He responds to the plea of the cryptic Sister Clyde to find a man missing from her soup kitchen, a man who may provide a lead to the vicious drug dealer who nearly killed Will. The search seduces Will away from the healing he seeks and he finds himself on the smarmy Miracle Mile. Alcohol, sex, and the potent drug “Nearvana” numb Will’s pain better than his infant Zen practice. He slips further and further into an underworld of the lost and hopeless only to find himself facing death—again.

GOODREADS // AMAZON 

Will Mansion, our Zen Detective is a really interesting character to read about and I personally enjoyed his narrative. There was a dark humor in his narrative that was very appealing to me as a reader. I enjoyed looking at the other characters through his eyes.

Other characters like Sister Clyde, Grady and others add so much dimension to the story. There is so much you learn about the characters that leaves you dumbfounded.

It's intricate and quite intense. It is quite dark and much different from the author's other works I've read. While the book starts with a single main plot, I was intrigued by the various mysteries that present themselves to the protagonist and reader as the book goes on. The plot is taken at a perfect pace. The story starts right at the beginning but the pace is slow. Then there are these adrenaline pumping scenes as the story moves forward that were highly interesting. The ending is quite unexpected and I loved the fact that the mystery element stayed till the very end. I must point out though that the plot is quite gritty and deals with dark elements like drug addiction and such.

I've always enjoyed the author's writing. She gives the reader all the details without making them feel overwhelmed. There is no info dumping and the emotions of the characters are well conveyed. I enjoyed hearing the story from Will's perspective as he is a really good protagonist.

-The characters

-The plot

-The writing

-Nothing

If you like dark gritty novels with suspense and mystery around every corner, The Zen Detective is for you.

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