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A Cold Day In Paradise (Alex McKnight Novels)
by Steve Hamilton
Product Group: Book
Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur (2000-02-15)
ISBN: 0312969198
EAN: 9780312969196
Dewy Decimal #: 813.54
Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
SKU: mon0000051500
Condition: Acceptable
Comments: Overall below average used book. May have highlighting, underlining, notes, price sticker on cover, or be an ex-library book. BUY WITH CONFIDENCE: 99% Positive feedback. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed!!
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Editorial Reviews
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Product Description
Other than the bullet lodged less than a centimeter from his heart, former Detroit police officer Alex McKnight thought he had put the nightmare of his partner's death and his own near-fatal injury behind him-after all, Maximillian Rose, convicted of the crimes, has been locked in the state penitentiary for thirteen years.But in the small town of Paradise, Michigan, where McKnight has traded his badge for a cozy cabin in the woods, a murderer with the unmistakable trademark of Maximillian Rose appears to be back to his killing ways. With Rose locked away, McKnight can't understand who else would know the intimate details of the old murders, described in the threatening notes and phone calls he receives-not to mention the signature blood-red rose left on his doorstep.And it seems like it'll be a frozen day in hell before McKnight can unravel the cold truth from a deadly deception in a town that's anything but Paradise.AUTHORBIO: STEVE HAMILTON, born and raised in Michigan, now works for IBM is upstate New York, where he lives with his wife and son.A COLD DAY IN PARADISE is the winner of the 1997 St. Martin's Press/Private Eye Writers of America Best First P.I. Novel contest.Hamilton is now at work on his next Alex McKnight mystery.
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Amazon.com Review
Doing their best to ensure the future of the genre, St. Martin's Press and the Private Eye Writers of America give out an award every year for the Best First Private Eye Novel. The 1997 winner was this splendidly evocative work by IBM employee Steve Hamilton, which takes just about every cliché in the field and turns it inside out. Yes, Alex McKnight was an athlete in his youth--but a minor league baseball player, not a top pro forced out by injury. And yes, he was a cop in Detroit before he moved up to the town of Paradise on the shores of Lake Superior--but even this overused genre icon is made believable by the details of a particularly bloody shootout. In Paradise, Alex runs a hunting camp built by his late father and only drifts into private investigations because of two friends, a persuasive lawyer and a local millionaire with a gambling problem who needs his help. When two bookmakers are murdered and the millionaire disappears, all the signs point to the psychopath who killed McKnight's partner and left a slug near Alex's heart 14 years before. The only problem is that this man has definitely, positively been in prison ever since. You might figure out the plot twists a page or two before McKnight does, but don't bet the farm on it. And the deep layer of details that Hamilton provides about life in this bleak part of the world add to the book's many pleasures. --Dick Adler
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Customer Reviews
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Great Crime/Suspense Novel!
Rating  (5)
Date: 2008-11-10
If you're looking for a crime/suspense novel to sink your teeth into, search no more! This book was suggested to me by a friend and I am SO glad that I gave it a shot. Wow, what a great novel! I was turning the pages late into the night to find out what was going to happen next, and with a toddler, believe me, I usually try to get all the sleep I can!
I won't go into the plot since it is all described above, but I did want to chime in and say to give this author/novel a try! I honestly enjoyed it so much that I'll be picking up his other books that also feature Alex McKnight. A+ in my book!
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A good read but that's about all.
Rating  (3)
Date: 2008-07-17
I read most of the other three star reviews and have to say that I don't understand how some of them can say that they dislike the book so much but give it an average rating of 3 stars. Seems contradictory to me. I also don't understand the five star ratings that so many people gave. To me five star means it is an enduring classic (ala The Big Sleep or The Maltese Falcon). This book is definitely NOT a classic. Although I found it a good read for the most part.
I liked the setting, most of the characters, and some of the dialog. I also found the relationship between the main character and the police chief Maven to be unrealistic. I also couldn't figure out what Sylivia's problem was. But then again I can't figure out women as a whole, what guy can?
But it seems like a good first effort despite the Psycho killer thing that is much overdone by a lot of authors.
I expect for this author to improve over time. If he doesn't then I will stop reading him.
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A Cold Day in Paradise
Rating (5)
Date: 2008-06-28
Another gripping read by Steve Hamilton. Alex Mcnight as the ex-cop, private investigator with a past which refuses to go away.
Seamless prose combined with an excellent plot makes it an ideal escape for a train or plane journey. No less dramatic, is the backdrop of a fierce Canadian winter. Hamilton creates the ideal atmosphere for this thriller. And snappy dialogue coupled with briliant characterisation keeps the reader absorbed.
McNight is a well-rounded, credible hero who evokes the reader's sympathy as well as admiration. After the first page , you just want to read on.
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Alex McKnight is a P.I. Worth Investigating
Rating (5)
Date: 2008-05-05
"A Cold Day In Paradise" is Steve Hamilton's first novel in his Alex McKnight series (there are currently 7 books). It was a good, quick read. This book won the 1997 St. Martin's Press/PWA Award for Best First Private Eye Novel, and it was an award well deserved.
Alex McKnight spent 8 years as a police officer in Detroit, Michigan. That career ended when Alex and his partner Franklin met up with a man named Rose, a delusional pyscho who killed Franklin and shot Alex 3 times in the chest.
Alex moved to Paradise (the town, not the idyllic meaning of the word) after his near death experience to live and run the rental of hunting cabins built by his father years ago. He is convinced by local lawyer Lane Uttley to get his private investigator license and start working cases for him.
When his friend, Edwin Fulton, calls him in the middle of the night to a murder scene, Alex gets involved in his biggest case yet. A local bookie has been killed, and another turns up dead within a few days. Alex starts getting calls and letters hand-delivered from Rose, which shouldn't be possible since Rose is supposed to be in jail for the rest of his life.
Then Edwin disappears, and even though his body has not been found yet, Alex feels responsible for his death. Can Alex figure out how Rose could be out murdering men when he is supposedly safely locked up in maximum security before anyone else ends up dead?
Hamilton did a great job keeping his characters intersting and keeping the action moving along at a quick pace. I am excited to see what happens next to Alex in "Winter of the Wolf Moon". If you enjoy P.I. mysteries and haven't had the pleasure of reading "A Cold Day in Paradise", I suggest you pick it up and give it a try.
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More U.P. please
Rating  (4)
Date: 2007-12-15
No need for me to retell an excellent novel. The author should have focused a little more on the U.P. setting, had he done so I would have given it 5 stars. I am looking forward to reading the sequel.
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Retail Price: $6.99
Our Price:$0.01
That's 100% Off!
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