No one from the 87th Precinct appears in this story until page 53 - nearly 1/5 of the way into the book! (Fat Ollie is from the 88th). Lots of details about the music industry, as the action begins on a boat where a new young singer is debuting her (hopefully) new hit song! But then, she gets kidnapped! NOW the 87th is on the case! It's a very good read, well-paced and exciting! My only negative was the time spent on Fat Ollie and Patricia.

I honestly don't understand how Patricia is attracted AT ALL to Fat Ollie. He has been described as obese, filthy, smelly, racist, bigoted, and misogynistic! SHE is described as a professional, in shape, gorgeous, intelligent, Latina woman. WHY ON EARTH WOULD SHE BE INTERESTED I HIM??? I know this is a work of fiction but come on!

Skip the Fat Ollie parts, and you've got a heck of a book here! ( )

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This, the 53rd of the 87th Precinct books is somewhat disappointing, It’s certainly tense, but lacks the humour and psychological insight that characterises the best if McBain’s work. It’s also, dare I say it, a bit long at around 300 pages. Given that there is just the single plot line in this one, a more slender volume might have been a better read.
McBain returns to the music biz in this one, as he did a few books ago in ‘Mischief’. This time the story revolves around the kidnapping of a young female singer on the brink of super-stardom. Carella gets pulled into the investigation, along side a supposedly elite but actually quite rubbish specialist squad. Whilst there are a few twists along the way, there’s little mystery and the linear plot drags a little. After the highly amusing ‘Fat Ollie’s Book’, it all feels a bit lacking in spark and fun.
Ollie Weeks does get to make an appearance, with a sub plot about his personal life, and his scenes are entertaining, as are those featuring Cotton Hawes and reporter Honey Blair.
The main story is downbeat and a bit nasty though. There’s a lot of discussion of rape and race, in response to the singer’s promo video for her new single, which features her being attacked by a black dancer. It’s all a bit rambling though, and lacks the punch that McBain’s writing on such things sometimes has.
More interesting is Carella’s ongoing musings on his Italian heritage and his place in the police department as a result. As in other recent books he feels a bit more fallible and human in this tale than he once did. He’s always seemed to be McBain’s idealised version of himself. This late introduction of weakness, just as McBain’s body was failing him as his health deteriorated, is an interesting addition to the books.
( )

Disappointing. Tamar Valparaiso is the next hot pop sensation, and is kidnapped from a yacht chartered for a kick-off party for her newest album. Steve Carella catches the squeal, and is asked to stay involved by the promoter following a turf war with the FBI. Things go badly wrong, with the FBI's approach but solid police work uncovers the criminal conspiracy. In a pointless side-story, McBain is still trying to make Fat Ollie Weeks more palatable via his relationship with a policewoman. This one felt like an hour long TV episode, and we see less and less of the 87th Precinct detectives. ( )

This one is about a pop singer on the verge of stardom who is kidnapped off a boat during the launch party of her debut album. This is probably the saddest 87th precinct book, for several reasons, the main one being McBain's untimely death in 2005. He had so many different things going that will never be finished. Carella is disenchanted with the job. Ollie is becoming human and dating a nice girl (what in the world is she thinking?!). I wish I knew where those long arc plots were going. Oh, well. Another reason it's so sad is the ending--the singer, Tamar, was set up by the CEO of her record company. He staged the kidnapping with some guys he met to generate publicity, and then they double-crossed him and raped and murdered her. Ow. ( )

A hard hitting police drama despite the fantasy title. Kept me interested. ( )