Publisher's Synopsis
Blood Tail by Michael Kent is the first book in the Lieutenant Robert Beaudry series. A murder mystery novel set in Montreal Canada with twists at every turn. This novel does an excellent job at introducing the reader to the characters. The author is able to describe Lieutenant Beaudry clearly, showing the depth of his nature. He is not your cookie cutter detective with nothing but the job to keep him going. Beaudry has a taste for classic muscle cars, fine wine, and excellent cooking. He is quick with a gun but also knows how to fight with his hands. His intuition helps keep him alive and makes him an excellent investigator, it also lands him in some hot water with Internal Affairs. The plot dives deeper than just who killed who and the twists keep adding up all the way to the end of the book. Kent has clearly set this novel up to be the start of an engaging series.
The novel opens with Lieutenant Beaudry and his wife having dinner. She uses this moment to tell him she is leaving him and before things get too heated he is called to the scene of a high profile murder case. The first twist occurs when one of the victims is in fact not dead. In order to protect their victim, the only one that can now identify his attackers, he is hidden away. There turns out to be a long list of reasons on why he might have been targeted, and suspects include his crazy soon-to-be-ex-wife, partners in his law firm, an overzealous fan of his TV reality show, or even the mob. While trying to solve the case Beaudry finds himself in difficult situations with more dead bodies than the police department is comfortable with. Dead bodies mean more investigations with the Internal Affairs office. Captain Jean O'Neil is Beaudry's boss and in charge of keeping him in line, needless to say, his hands are full. Kent gives Jean O'Neil a very short tempered and direct personality, a contrast to the easy-going personality of Beaudry. Together they work well and complement each other. Beaudry also manages to find a new girlfriend just days after finding out his wife is leaving him. She has a quick wit to match his, a demanding career as a nurse, and a carefree attitude about relationships. They find themselves thrown together over the murder case and through their relationship we learn more about who they are outside their jobs.
Blood Tail keeps the reader on edge with every new clue sending the investigation in a new direction each time. Kent keeps the reader guessing how things will tie up all the way till the end of the novel. As for where the title comes from, you will have to ask his cat Crackers.
