Porters Rule by Adam Rabinowitz
I read Garage Band by Adam last year and enjoyed that book tremendously, so couldn’t wait to get my hands on another of his books. I enjoy how different the two are, it’s amazing for me to see how there is almost a double sidedness to authors.
The Book
Matt Porter is a cop, he’s always been one of those people who stand up against the reckless, the mean and the criminal. He lives by a set of rules which have thus far ensured that his career as Detective is successful and enjoyable. Rule 2: All women are trouble. No exceptions. Despite his instinct screaming against it, Matt breaks Rule 2. Pursuing the captivating Grace after he saves her from two ruffians in a diner. Or at least he thinks he saved her. How sure is he that she needed saving to begin with? As an internal battle wages on within, Matt is faced with not only saving Grace from someone he shares a history with, but also with a drug smuggling operation with connections in places far higher than he’d like them to be, an operation which throws his entire career into turmoil and results in him being no different from the men he once fought to detain.
My Thoughts
What I liked
1. Matt was a fascinating character to follow. Being a cop I had expected a pompous and aggressive personality but found instead a man who appeared to be experiencing a sort of life crisis. Questioning the purpose of his presence on the force, the feelings he develops for Grace and the emotional bulldozing he experiences after a missing persons case made him far more interesting to follow. When he joins forces with Sean Moore is when my curiosity really piqued because it seemed to be such an unlikely pairing
2. Coffee. There’s a lot of coffee drinking in this book and I am a huge coffee fan myself. I do so love books which appeal to the loves of my life, so really loved that caffeine seemed to be so totally critical to normal working. I am with you on that one!
3. Wilma. We all know someone like her, and despite the repetitive “…a man’s voice said.” I still chuckled.
4. Action scenes galore. Most books have action scenes, but Porters Rule gives a literal blow-by-blow account of any fight that occurs (generally between Matt and someone else) which I really enjoyed.
5. A direct challenge on the criminal system of most countries is also present. No sly hinting, but instead a direct admission that the criminal system is actually a fair amount more protected that most of us realise. Money talks, shit walks and all that. It’s a fantastic approach of protected criminal’s vs police.
6. Rabinowitz is a master at building suspense, he really is. He weaves out a smooth stream of situations, introducing each new character while simultaneously dropping subtle hints as to where they may or may not fit into the larger picture; this induced a fair amount of question asking in me as I tried to determine exactly who the person responsible is. It’s not too fast paced, but with action, romance and corruption involved, it progresses really well.
7. While most of Matt’s interactions with other characters were what I considered to be rather typical for the type of person he is, I enjoyed his conversation with Ann, which happened to include a rather sound piece of advice that I loved;
“Live life every day, is all I can say. If you feel you need to save someone, save them. If people tell you you’re crazy, nod and say yes, you’re crazy, but at least you’re living your life”
What I disliked
1. I wasn’t entirely comfortable with the speed at which Grace and Matt find themselves immersed in a rather abnormal relationship. For one, I found Grace to be dodgy, and wasn’t happy with the idea that she’s going to
2. I do feel that maybe the book could have been condensed a little bit, while the action scenes and descriptive details throughout the book were good to have, in fact completely necessary and super appreciated; there were times when I felt my attention waning.
Conclusion
This is a quintessential good cop facing seemingly insurmountable challenges when trying to take down the bad guy who has used money to usurp power from a city’s ‘big brass’. It’s a brilliantly written book which will definitely appeal to anyone who enjoys a good old crime mystery spearheaded by a cop. Matt blurs the lines of hero and rogue and has you on tenterhooks with every new revelation. And I’ll admit I do so love it when South Africa gets mentioned even though the book is set elsewhere (yes, Adam is a Saffa).
Review Rating ⅘
More Information:
Published by: Imagin8 Publishing
Published date: 8 September 2015
Genre: Mystery/Crime
