Righteous by Joe Ide
Mulholland Books/Little Brown & Co, $26.00, 326 pages, ISBN 978-0-316-26777-9
Isaiah Quintinabe—one of the most original sleuthhounds to ever grace the pages of mystery and crime fiction—is back in a second installment that’s equally as good, or better than his Edgar-nominated first, which was entitled simply IQ.
Righteous, by Joe Ide, finds IQ on a mission. He’s the high school dropout from East Long Beach, California with a shy mannerism and world-class intelligence. He’s the neighborhood guy who solves cases that the cops can’t or won’t be bothered with. Ten years ago, his beloved older brother Marcus was killed by a hit and run driver. It’s an unsolved case that broke his heart, keeps him awake at night and eats at his soul. Isaiah was determined to solve the mystery, but unable to do so, and it plunged him into despair, almost destroying his life. Now, his career is flourishing, he has a new dog and an elevated status in the community as a Private Eye. But, when a chance encounter reopens that old wound, Isaiah is compelled to start the hunt for his brothers killer all over again. Then, as if that’s not enough, his brother’s old girlfriend . . . whom Isaiah has a secret crush on . . . asks him to rescue her half-sister Janine, she’s a beautiful DJ and degenerate gambler who, along with her deadbeat boyfriend, is being stalked by Chinese gangsters and a sinister, seven-foot tall loan shark in Las Vegas. It’s a quest full of treachery, twists and terror from which he may not survive. Let’s hope he does, because IQ is one of the most original and coolest characters to come down the literary pike since Sax Rohmer penned his first Dr. Fu Manchu novel. The MBR is all in for Joe Ide and Isaiah Quintinabe and can’t wait for the next installment!