What do You think about Chiefs (2006)?
This tells the story of three police chiefs of the small fictional town of Delaney, Georgia and their involvement in trying to solve a series of murders. The novel is divided into three parts, each named after a chief. The first, Will Henry Lee, was police chief in the 1920s; the second, Sonny Butts, was briefly chief right after World War II, and the third and final part of the novel deals with the first black police chief, Tucker Watts, in 1963. I enjoyed the television miniseries of this novel and it proved faithful to the book. This isn't just a mystery. In fact, I wouldn't call it much of a mystery since the identity of the murderer is strongly implied early on--but it is an engaging portrait of a small Southern town over 40 eventful years and a fascinating look at law enforcement and the racial relations of the period as well. This was over 500 pages and it went all too quickly--often suspenseful and never dull.
—Lisa (Harmonybites)
Stuart Woods first and favorite book. Following the creation of Delano in 1920, William Henry is the first police chief which pisses off Foxy Funderburke to no limit and starts a lifelong blood feud with authority and a psycho killer. William Henry is killed in a cluster fuck shooting and Willie Cole escapes while his father is caught and fried. Sonny Butts takes over and cannot escape his deep hidden avorice toward violence. When he suspects Foxy of kidnap/torture and confronts him at his home, he and his bike are buried on the back hill side. Billy Lee supports a black MP for the next police chief and points for the Governor job. Tucker runs afoul of the klan and good old boys, but takes his suspicions about Foxy to the FBI. The subsequent search, gunfight and excavation reveal the demented Foxy's victims.This book won Woods' a well deserved newest novelist award, and it is a true rock classic. THIS IS A MUST READ FOR ANY STUART WOODS' FAN. The storyline would appear to be in some large part autobiographical, and I think that contributes to the richness of the storyline. This is an incredible read for any late night page turner!
—Will
For some of my "light" reading over the years I've enjoyed several murder/mystery series. I've gone through all the Rita Mae Brown "Mrs. Murphy" mysteries set in Crozet, VA (a real town where my mom once actually lived that's outside of Charlottesville), all the Rita Mae Brown "Sister Jane" mysteries with their fox-hunting themes, all the Susan Alberts "China Bayles" mysteries with their herbal themes set in the fictional town of Pecan Springs, TX, all the Michael Connelly "Harry Bosch" and "Mickey Haller" mysteries set (usually) in L.A., and now I've been reading a lot of Stuart Woods "Stone Barrington" and "Holly Barker" mysteries set (usually) in New York and Florida. Stuart Woods has been prolific and poured out over thirty books over the last three decades, and routinely these books are nothing special literature-wise, and I normally give them (and the other murder/mystery series mentioned earlier) three stars. However, this is Stuart Woods first book --- and it won the Edgar Award (given for crime fiction) --- and I was pleasantly surprised to find it a cut above all the other books he's written that I've read so far. Many would say his books are far too formulaic. But not this one. Of course, if an author's first of a great many books is his best one, and all the ones that follow it are not as good, there's a message being communicated there about the author's legacy.
—Mike
