, has just come out in hardcover, and his first one is new in paperback.Will the Iraq war ever play as large a part in crime fiction as Vietnam? Tilt-A-Whirl is the first mystery I can think of to have a lead character who did some hard and dirty time in Iraq. Former military policeman John Ceepak has brought his exceptional physical strength, sharply-honed crime-solving skills and high-minded morality to the beachside town of Sea Haven in a state that’s probably New Jersey. In Grabenstein’s thoughtful, funny and exciting debut, Ceepak is teamed up with 24-year-old Danny Boyle, a part-time summer cop who joined the force largely to impress the college girls who visit there.
The only thing they at first seem to have in common is a love for Bruce Springsteen. But the murder of a slick real estate magnate, knifed to death while secretly meeting his young daughter at the town's rundown amusement park, moves this unlikely pair of police officers into something very much like friendship.
