{Blog Tour/Review} Murder Takes Time by Giacomo Giammatteo

Welcome to our stop on Giacomo Giammatteo's Murder Takes Time blog tour! We hope you enjoy!

ISBN #: 978-0985030209

Page Count: 438

Copyright: April 12, 2012

Publisher: Inferno Publishing Company

Book Summary:

(Taken from Amazon)

A string of brutal murders has bodies piling up in Brooklyn, and Detective Frankie Donovan knows what is going on. Clues left at the crime scenes point to someone from the old neighborhood, and that isn't good.

Frankie has taken two oaths in his life - the one he took to uphold the law when he became a cop, and the one he took with his two best friends when they were eight years old and inseparable. Those relationships have forced Frankie to make many tough decisions, but now he faces the toughest one of his life; he has five murders to solve and one of those two friends is responsible. If Frankie lets him go, he breaks the oath he took as a cop and risks losing his job. But if he tries to bring him in, he breaks the oath he kept for twenty-five years - and risks losing his life.

In the neighborhood where Frankie Donovan grew up, you never broke an oath.

Mandy's Review:

Cover

Unfortunately, I do not care for the cover. I believe that when most potential readers take a look at this cover, it'll deter them from picking it up and giving this book a chance ... which is a shame because this book is wonderful and should be read by all murder-mystery lovers.

Plot

Three boys grew up in the same neighborhood and became best friends. They did everything together, especially get into trouble. As with any group of friends, each boy played a certain role within the group. One was the scapegoat, one was the charismatic leader, and one was smart enough to know how to keep the peace.

Over the years, each go their separate ways only to come together again through a string of murders. Frankie, the boy who grew up to become a Detective, recognizes hints left by the murderer. They remind him of various situations the three were in while growing up. The only question is: which of the other two friends is the killer?

Main Characters

Frankie - aka "Bugs" - had a horrible childhood. His mother was cheating on his father and his father became abusive. There were a bunch of siblings, so it was difficult to come by new clothes unless you worked and earned money for them. His only reprieve was spending time with his two best friends.

Niccolo - aka "Nicky the Rat" - also had a difficult life growing up. His mother died in childbirth. He was the only child and his father seemed so distant all the time. Nicky spent the majority of his time with Rosa, his mother's best friend who helped raise him.

Tony - had the easiest life of the three friends. His mother was Rosa and she always made sure he had what he needed ... except her undivided attention. Tony's resentment of Nicky seemed to grow the more time Nicky spent over at Tony's house. Tony and Nicky looked so much alike that people often commented that they could be brothers.

Angela - Nicky's first love. She often stopped by Mama Rosa's to learn how to cook. She knew Nicky for years before they even went out on their first date. They planned on getting married and raising a family. Then a situation occurred which caused Nicky to be taken away from Angela for years. That's when Angela's life changed for the worse.

Overall

I absolutely loved this book. Once I began reading it, I did not want to put it down.

Murder Takes Time is exceptionally written. The back-and-forth between past and present teases you by giving you just enough information and clues to make you eagerly anticipate what's going to happen next. Around the middle of the novel, I had a feeling I knew what was going to happen but I just had to finish reading it so I could find out the details. I just cannot gush enough about this book.

If you love murder-mysteries, you have got to check out this book!!! I cannot wait until the second book in this series is out ... although, I do wonder how the next storyline will work out ... hhmmm ...


*An ecopy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.