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On the Grind

Stephen J. Cannell
St. Martin’s Press (2009)
ISBN 9780312366285
Reviewed by Kam Aures for Rebeccasreads.com (06/09)


“On the Grind” is a gripping, fast-paced novel that will hold your unwavering attention from cover to cover.  Author Stephen J. Cannell “is an Emmy Award-winning writer, and in his thirty-five year career, he has created more than forty television series.”  (From back flap.)  With such impressive credentials, the expectations of the reader are set very high, and trust me you will not be disappointed.  “On the Grind” far surpassed any of my expectations.

The book begins with Detective Shane Scully being escorted to the police station late at night.  Facing felony charges of intentionally losing evidence, Scully is offered a deal to try to save the LAPD bad press.  He pleads guilty to obstruction of justice, a misdemeanor, and resigns from the force.  With this on his record, he is going to have great difficulty getting police work at any of the reputable departments.  However, there is one department that doesn’t care; in fact, having something like this on his record may make him even more of a desirable candidate.  That department is in Haven Park.  It is where everyone goes when they can’t get hired anywhere else.  The salary is on the lower side, but the high level of corruption and kickbacks more than increase the pay to a desirable level.  The behavior of the police is tolerated because most of the population of Haven Park consists of illegal immigrants who really don’t have any say as to what goes on.  Everything in the city runs smoothly, until someone else tries to run for mayor which threatens to destroy the status quo.

Cannell’s writing is full of twists and turns that I never saw coming.  The plot of the story was fresh and intriguing.  “On the Grind” is a definite page turner and a book that you will not want to put down.  I truly enjoyed the main character, Shane Scully, and as this is Cannell’s eighth novel to feature the detective, I will most certainly be going back and reading his previous work.  I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys action-packed novels and/or novels about policing and police corruption.       

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