In this novel, the third of the “old man Quarry” novels, as
they have been unofficially dubbed, our former contract killer is now past 70
years of age and continues to manage the Sylvan Lodge in Minnesota. A visit
from the 40ish year-old daughter of Mary Ann, an old high school girlfriend,
turns out to be a summons from said girlfriend, leading to Quarry’s return to
his old hometown and his high school class’s 50th reunion. Seems
somebody is out to kill Mary Ann’s daughter, even though the local police have
dismissed the so-called murder attempts as accidents or gang initiation
activity.
As Quarry digs into the case, he re-engages with quite a few
reunion attendees, bringing back all sorts of memories, both good and bad. The
danger increases as he gets closer to discovering the source of the attacks and
the action grows more and more hard-boiled.
Quarry fans will certainly enjoy this one as will newcomers
to the series. The author points out in the afterword that there is no reason
to read this series in chronological order or even in the order they were
published, and I completely agree. There is always a short bit about Quarry’s
history to entice a new reader to each novel.
I’m a relative late comer to the Quarry series and have read
only about five so far. With each one I read, I am so thankful that I have many
more to go. Told in the first-person, they have a hard-boiled nature on par
with Raymond Chandler or Dashiell Hammett and, of course, Mickey Spillane. They
also offer some of the finest dialogue written in any prose today. Frankly, I would
have a hard time choosing among all these authors as my favorite.
Keep ‘em coming.
Expected publication November 10, 2026