‘Club 27’ by Martin Tracey

Synopsis

DCI Judd Stone is heading for rock bottom. He breaks the rules, he gambles and he’s begun to play around.
An unlikely lifeline is thrown Judd’s way when he finds himself catapulted into trying to prevent Rock and Pop sensation Phoenix from becoming the next member of the infamous 27 club – the name given to the list of iconic musicians who die at the age of 27.
Judd’s quest is not made easier when Phoenix’s lifestyle is even more self-destructive than his own – but how can Judd possibly protect someone from themselves?
And who else could be conspiring to benefit from Phoenix’s death? A crazed fan? Birmingham’s ruthless Gangsters? A Secret Society? Or maybe even those who Phoenix believes to be closest to her?
And when Phoenix embarks on an unprecedented tour performing at some of the most wondrous places of the world, the stakes to protect her become even higher.

My Review

I read and loved ‘Mind Guerillas’, which is the first book in the series featuring former Detective Chief Inspector Judd Stone.  When I heard that there was a second book in the series, I knew that I had to read it as soon as I could.  I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘Club 27’ but more about that in a bit.

What can I say about former Detective Chief Inspector Judd Stone?  I found it impossible to dislike him even if he did scare the doo doo out of me.  Underneath his hard nut exterior, he does have a heart.  He isn’t exactly a soft touch but he does have his humane side and this appears every once in a while.  Judd is one of those people, who doesn’t scare easily and he isn’t afraid to stand up to bullies.  Every so often, Stone does go over the top and uses extreme violence.

It didn’t take me long to get into ‘Club 27’.  In fact by the time I got to the end of the first few pages, I knew that I was in for a treat and that I would find it extremely difficult to put the book to one side for any length of time.  I was spot on in both cases.  I was drawn into the story from the very start and I just couldn’t stop reading.  I had to find out how the story was going to pan out.  The pages turned over so quickly that it was almost as if they were turning themselves and the page numbers became a blur.  I found ‘Club 27’ to be a gripping read, which kept me on my toes and which kept me on the edge of my seat throughout.

‘Club 27’ is extremely well written.  Martin certainly knows how to grab your attention and draw you into what proves to be a compelling read.  Martin’s writing style is very easy to get used to and to get along with.  For me, the story hit the ground running and maintained a fairly fast pace throughout.  Reading ‘Club 27’ was much like being on a scary and unpredictable rollercoaster ride with several twists and turns along the way.  Certain descriptions of the violence did made me wince a bit.

In short, I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘Club 27’ and I would recommend it to other readers.  I will certainly be reading more of Martin’s work in the future.  The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.