Revolver

Duane Swierczynski

Jul 2016 · Sold by Mulholland Books

About this ebook

Three generations torn apart -- by bullets fired fifty years ago.

Philadelphia, 1965: Two street cops -- one black, one white -- are gunned down in a corner bar. One of the fallen officers, Stan Walczak, leaves behind a 12-year-old boy, Jimmy.

Philadelphia, 1995: Homicide detective Jim Walczak learns that his father's alleged killer, Terrill Lee Stanton, has been sprung from prison. Jim stalks the ex-con, hoping to finally learn the truth.

Philadelphia, 2015: Jim's daughter Audrey, a forensic science student, re-opens her grandfather's murder for a research paper. But as Audrey digs deeper, she comes to realize that Stanton probably didn't pull the trigger -- and her father may have made a horrible mistake...

Ratings and reviews

If you don’t like books that skip back and forth between time periods, then you should note that this one covers periods in the lives of three generations of a family of Philadelphia law enforcement. But, if you can deal with that, this one is worth it. In 1965, racial tensions have exploded into violent rioting and Stan Walczak of Polish background ends up being partnered with a Black officer, George Wildey (pronounced Will-Dee). Stan and George are in a local bar to meet with an informant but, unknown to them, they have been set up and are both murdered. There is a suspect, but no strong evidence against him and he is going to prison for another crime anyway. In 1995, Stan’s son Jim, now also a cop, is investigating a horrific murder of a young woman when he finds that the suspect in his father’s murder has been paroled. Jim had been obsessed with his father’s murder and is determined to keep an eye on the newly paroled suspect to look for any excuse to arrest him or maybe worse. In 2015, we meet Jim's daughter, Audrey, estranged from her family, her body covered with tattoos, clearly an alcoholic with a special fondness for bloody marys, and some buried issues that are obvious from the beginning but we only gradually learn more about. She is in Houston studying to be a crime-scene investigator but soon to be kicked out of school for not completing her work. When her father requests the whole family return for a 50th anniversary commemoration of Stan and George’s murder, she grudgingly complies, planning to stay one night. But, then she realizes that her long delayed project could be a new investigation of her grandfather’s murder and all three of these time periods and their stories become intertwined in this book. Oh, and while there we are also introduced to her older brother, Stas who is now also a Philadelphia cop. It’s a good story, too. It takes many twists and while some things are obvious to the reader (the “suspect” in Stan and George’s murder is pretty clearly not the culprit), most are not. The only thing missing is probably more detail on George and is family, which also has a convoluted history. In fact, George’s father had also been a cop, had been murdered, and no one had been punished. This is my third book by Swierczynski (previously read “The Wheelman” and “Canary”). It doesn’t idolize the police but neither does it demonize them (though it does paint politicians as very corrup and mentions Frank Rizzo by name). There is a lot of alcohol, not just with Audrey, lots of cursing, but it’s pretty realistic. I am glad I read it.

The Walczak family has been in law enforcement for at least 50 years. In this book, the author starts with Stan Walczak. He and his partner, George Wildey, are shot to death in a corner bar while waiting for someone who has information for them. The killer has never been caught. 30 years later, Homicide Detective Jim Walczak receives news that Terrill Lee Stanton, the man he has always been sure killed his father, has been in prison for unrelated crimes. He is now free and back home in Philadelphia. Jim finally wants the truth about what happened when his father was killed ... stalking Stanton might give him those answers. 20 years later, Jim's daughter, Audrey, a student of forensic science, re-opens the cold cold case of her grandfather's death. As she investigates and digs in deep, she comes to the conclusion that Stanton might not have been the killer. This book was something a little different than one would expect reading a crime thriller. Covering three separate and distinct plots within the same family, show the family investigating a heroin ring, the rape and murder of a young journalist, and daughter Audrey, taking on a cold case as an assignment for her degree. The book goes from present to the past and back again. The reader is treated to the author's obvious attention to details, starting with how Walczak and Wildey first met and became police partners. The families keep bumping into each other for many years. This was almost like 3 different stories. The author has does a fantastic job in melding this saga into a highly suspenseful story with lots of twists and turns. Many thanks to the author / Mulholland Books / Netgalley for the advanced digital copy of this highly entertaining book. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

Great read

About the author

Duane Swierczynski is the Edgar-nominated author of nine novels including Canary, Severance Package, and the Shamus Award-winning Charlie Hardie series (Fun and Games, Hell and Gone, Point and Shoot). He's written over 250 comics for Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Valiant and IDW, including The Black Hood, the first comic for Archie's Dark Circle imprint. Swierczynski has also collaborated with CSI creator Anthony E. Zuiker on the bestselling Level 26 series. He lives in Burbank with his wife and children.