Latest Books The Big Thrill Recommends: THE QUEEN CITY DETECTIVE AGENCY by Snowden Wright

G. A. Rivers

Big Thrill RecommendsLatest Books

August 22, 2024

The Big Thrill Recommends: THE QUEEN CITY DETECTIVE AGENCY by Snowden Wright

THE QUEEN CITY DETECTIVE AGENCY is the latest by Snowden Wright and his opening salvo in a superb new detective series. If a PI tale steeped in Southern Noir and the complex persona of a Black female detective trying to stay afloat in her hometown of Meridian, Mississippi—where the locals leap off the page and tug you into the mid-1980s—sounds like a blast, well, this is your cup of sweet tea.

Meet Clem (Clementine) Baldwin, a Black and biracial PI and former cop, and her white partner (and good friend), Dixon Hicks. Clem and Dixon investigate the suicide-turned-murder of Turnip Coogan, a purported Dixie Mafia hack and breeder of cockfighting roosters who plummets from the roof of the County Courthouse while in lockup. Next thing you know, Clem and Dixon are dodging bullets at the local John Wesley Hardin club as they interview Turnip’s pregnant widow, who’s relieved by Turnip’s demise. Refusing to be intimidated by the near miss, Clem and Dixon remain committed to finding the killer even if the Dixie Mafia might have ordered the attack.

To say Clem and her relationship with her hometown are complex and emotionally fraught is like saying a Mint Julep is a Southern classic, and, speaking of booze, it’s the bourbon that often keeps Clem on an even keel. She’s constantly reminded how the only thing more readily overlooked in Mississippi than a capable Black woman is a capable, Black female private investigator. The story is intriguing and moves in unexpected directions, but it’s Clem’s inner confrontations and dialogue and the cast of characters zapped to life by tight, expressive prose that makes this story such a standout. I suspect the QUEEN CITY DETECTIVE AGENCY will gain quick notice and many readers. Waiting for the second installment to arrive will not be easy.

The Big Thrill Recommends: THE QUEEN CITY DETECTIVE AGENCY by Snowden Wright

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G. A. Rivers

G. A. Rivers grew up in a tiny town in the rural Midwest with his nose in a book or wandering the countryside, and was notorious for having signed out most every fiction book in the school library. These days he holds a PhD in the life sciences and has spent over 25 years leading research teams in the pharmaceutical industry, many in the Northeast. A dog lover, husband and proud father of two adult sons, he started writing action-adventure thrillers wherever he and his laptop came to rest—weekends at home, jet planes and hotels, soccer practices, early mornings at Disney World, and many places long forgotten. He is represented by Terrie Wolf of AKA Literary Management and now lives and writes in the Midwest. You can find him on X/Twitter and Facebook as @ga_rivers and GA Rivers Author.