Review: THE CHICAGO WAY (Vintage Books 2008)
Author: Michael Harvey
THE CHICAGO WAY introduces private eye Michael Kelly, a former Chicago cop who has issues (don't they all?) and an apparent fondness for ancient Greek literature (in the original Greek, no less). If this sounds like the standard set-up to the usual private eye novel, don't be fooled. The book has much more going for it.
Kelly is hired by his former partner on the force to solve an old rape and battery case – it's several years old and as cold as they come. Kelly gets drawn even further into solving the crime when his ex-partner/client is murdered and it appears Kelly's being framed for it. One thing leads to another and Kelly is looking into the connections between the old rape case and the recent murder.
To solve the mystery, Kelly turns to his many contacts (loads and loads of them). Every time you turn the page, the reader gets to meet a new (often, colorful) character – some from Kelly's past. People who can help him with his predicament (being suspected of killing his client), as well as solving both crimes. They include an ambitious (and, of course, sexy) television news reporter, a childhood friend who works as a forensic DNA expert and an old pal from the district attorney's office. Plus Kelly must deal with the rape victim, who seems to have a few psychological problems and pops up unexpectedly, often armed with a gun like so many "dames" in hardboiled fiction.
Michael Harvey is a skilled writer, to say the least. His style is terse, yet evocative, and manages to convey both the look and feel of Chicago. He delves into the city's politics with authority. He also includes details about the weather, the streets, the neighborhoods and the bars (of course, there are bars). And he does so with prose so well-crafted, wry and gritty it would make Raymond Chandler weep.
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