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Here’s our second dose of Robert Germaux today (his guest post, Why Do We Write? showed up earlier). In this Q&A, he gets to talk about the nitty-gritty of his experience in self-publishing (as opposed to the more philosophical “Why” from before). As you can see from the first question (because there’s no way I call an author by their first name) he took it upon himself to do a little remix on the phrasing of some of these questions, making me sound better in the process—I appreciate that almost as much as the answers he gave.

Tell us a little about yourself, Bob.
I started writing after spending thirty-one years teaching high school English in Pittsburgh. Like (I assume) most people who follow your blog, I’m a lifelong bookaholic. I’ve written mostly mysteries, but also a couple of romance novels, along with three (four, probably, by the time you post this) collections of essays about “life and stuff.” No website, but you can find my books and more info about me at my Amazon Author Page.

What kind of expenses do you incur with self-publishing your books?
My primary expenses in publishing my books are cover art (all of my covers have been done by the wonderful Brandi McCann in Maine), and formatting (mostly by Word-2-Kindle). I used to have some online promotion work done by a woman in Texas, but Susan retired a few years ago, and I haven’t replaced her. So at the moment, I spend around $350 to get a book ready for publication, which means my break-even point for any given book is 175 sales. That hasn’t happened with any of my books, so no, I don’t make money on these things. I used to feel guilty about spending so much money on my writing, with little to no return, until my wife said I should look at my writing as a hobby that I enjoy. That led me to write “Well, I Don’t Play Golf” for one of my Grammar Sex books of essays.

Speaking of my wife, Cynthia’s my biggest fan, not to mention my “beta reader.” She knows my writing style and my characters as well as I do, and 99% of the time, I gladly accept her edits to my work.

A final note. I’ve been on Amazon for just under ten years now, and I’ve sold 650 books. I doubt I’ll ever hit that break-even point with any of my books. On the other hand, people have borrowed my books from Amazon and read almost 30,000 pages, so I know I have a few fans out there. Fortunately, I don’t need to make money with my writing. I write because I love to write. Heck, I’m having fun doing this. Plus, it keeps me off the streets.

How do you promote your books?
Early on, Susan arranged for book tours for several of my books, but these days, I mostly rely on my small but loyal fan base to buy my books. Some of them get alerts when I publish a new book, others follow me on FB. Plus, I have a good many friends and family members who promote my work on their social media sites. And, of course, H.C., you’ve has been more than generous with your time over the years in terms of reading and reviewing most of my books.

What’s the breakdown of your audience?
I’d say at least half of my readers are people who know me: family members, friends, former colleagues, former students, et al. The rest are just people who’ve stumbled across my books online or heard about them from a friend, etc. One cool thing is that last year, someone in the UK borrowed all five of my Jeremy Barnes mysteries and read them in the space of about a week. I got an essay (“My UK Binge-Reader”) out of that for Grammar Sex 4 (Seriously?), the book I’m writing at the moment. Along with that, I’ve had a sale in India and another in Australia, allowing me to tell people I’ve “gone international.”

What made you decide to self-publish? Have you tried getting a deal with a publisher?
After I finished Small Bytes, my first Jeremy Barnes mystery, I queried a lot of agents, most of whom wouldn’t accept manuscripts from unpublished authors (yeah, that was maddening). But a guy here in the Pittsburgh area not only read the book, he immediately offered to represent me. I signed a contract with Uve (that was a red-letter day for this boy), then sat back and waited for the offers to roll in. (Ah, naïveté, thy name is Germaux.) Over the next several years, as I kept writing, Uve kept pushing my work to publishers big and small. He came close a couple of times to, as he put it, finding a home for my books, but despite his best efforts, nothing ever happened. (A man who owned a small publishing house told Uve that my work was “really good,” but he only published about a dozen books a year and just couldn’t justify the expense on a new author.) Eventually, I decided to go the indie route, and at my suggestion, Uve and I parted ways, professionally. We still keep in touch, and he continues to encourage me. BTW, Uve’s a fairly well-known agent. He represents best-selling authors, and he’s negotiated movie deals for some of his clients. He never took a penny from me (even when I offered) during the years he tried to find a home for my books. Just to have him tell me my work is worthy of publication meant a lot.

How do you keep to whatever deadlines you set? If you could start over, knowing what you know now, what would you do differently?
I’ve never really had a problem in terms of getting the work done. I truly love writing, and most days I can’t wait to get started. It probably helps that I’ve always been very organized, something I quickly learned was a prerequisite to surviving as an English teacher with over 2,000 student compositions to grade every year.

If I had it to do all over again, I’d probably go the indie route right away (my only regret being missing out on working with Uve). I know now that the odds of an indie author finding a publisher are incredibly low. Doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen, but it’s rare. (For those very few indie writers who make that leap to traditional publishing, I say congrats. Good on you!) I wasn’t driven to be a commercial success (although that would have been just dandy). I just wanted to write and put my work out there, so I would have done that sooner.

Thanks for your time and participation! Hope you enjoyed it! And do know that there are many of us out here who appreciate and applaud what you do (and our number is growing)!

Be sure to look over his Author Page, he’s got a little bit of everything—contemporary fic, P.I. novels, police procedurals, and some non-fiction essays for you to choose from.

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The Inside Scoop—Guest Post: Why Do We Write? by Robert Germaux

By HCNewton

On July 28, 2023

In A Few Quick Questions With..., Writing

Inside Scoop logo Robert Germaux has always been game for anything I’ve asked him if he wanted to do–which is great, because I’ve always appreciated whatever he produces. Better than the things he’s done with me are the books that he’s provided for me and/or I’ve purchased. Like this post, for example, which is a revised version of something that appeared in one of his books and on this site a few years ago. He’ll be back for the Self-Publishing Q&A here in a few.

In 1855, the difficulty of writing was described by some long-forgotten wit who said that words came from an author “drop by drop.” Jump ahead to 1949, when Pulitzer Prize winning sportswriter Red Smith, when asked if writing a daily column was hard, replied, “Why, no. You simply sit down at the typewriter, open your veins, and bleed.”

There are numerous other versions of the “open your veins and bleed” school of writing that have been ascribed to many people, including Ernest Hemingway. Unfortunately, there is no real evidence that Hemingway ever actually said anything along those lines, so I guess I’m not going to be able to sneak a good Papa reference into this essay. Another time, perhaps.

Getting back to the topic du jour, why do so many writers describe their craft in such disparaging terms? Apparently, a lot of us love the finished product but maybe not so much the process of getting there. Dorothy Parker, a founding member of the famed Algonquin Round Table, evidently was speaking for a good many writers when she said, “I hate writing. I love having written.”

While researching this piece, I had no trouble finding quotes about writers who claim to hate writing, but the reverse was definitely more difficult. Certainly, you can find people who say they enjoy writing, but they appear to be a distinct minority. For every author who said he or she loved writing, I found at least five or six who fell into the “tortured writer” category, which I have to admit came as a surprise. I mean, I don’t know about you, but if I was voluntarily engaging in an activity that I believed could in any way be compared to torture, I’d put an end to my participation in that activity right quick.

So, again, why do we write? Personally, I didn’t begin writing until I’d retired after three decades of teaching high school English, and it wasn’t until a good many years (and a bunch of books) later that I felt comfortable telling people I was a writer, as opposed to a retired teacher. Why do I write? Well, I can assure you it’s not for the money. At this moment, I have five books on Amazon: three mysteries, one love story (The Backup Husband) and a collection of humorous essays called Grammar Sex (and other stuff). My books sell for $2.99, which means my cut is a hefty $2.05 for every sale. So that recent vacation my wife and I took to Bermuda was courtesy of our teacher pensions and social security, not the man of the house’s book royalties.

I don’t hate writing. I wouldn’t keep doing it if I did (see previous reference: torture). Is writing hard for me sometimes? Of course, just as I’m sure it is for you. If I’m smack in the middle of one of my detective novels, do I enjoy waking up at 2:00 am and furiously scribbling down notes about scenes or dialogues I just found racing through my mind? Not really, but when I put those notes together the next day in another chapter of my book, it makes losing a bit of sleep the night before not so bad. If you’ve had similar experiences, you know what I mean. We just have to get those thoughts down. We just have to write.

To some degree, I think most writers are perfectionists, which explains Oscar Wilde’s quote about spending “all morning putting in a comma . . . and all afternoon taking it out.” Okay, that’s a little extreme, but you get the idea. My point here is that, as perfectionists, we like to be able to make sure that things work out the way we want them to, and creating our own little worlds is a great way to do just that.

One more note, this one maybe not so obvious. In fact, there’s a bit of irony involved. Writing is among the most solitary of professions, yet its end result is to link us to others (many others, we hope). That simple act of sitting down in front of your computer or laptop (or, in my case, at my kitchen table with a yellow legal pad and my Pilot Precise V5 extra fine point pen) allows us to make a connection with the rest of the world. And I think in the end, for me at least, that connection is both reason and reward for why I write.

I hope you’re in that minority of writers who not only have to write, but also actually like what you do. My experience has been that, unfortunately, most people don’t really enjoy their work. If you’re a writer, you’re already in a select group of people with skills that appear to be rapidly diminishing in our society. So take advantage of your talent. Have fun with it. Use it to form those connections with others. It may be frustrating at times (especially in the middle of the night when you turn on the light and awaken your ever-understanding and supportive spouse because you just figured out whodunit), but trust me, you’ll feel much better the next day when you write that final chapter in your latest masterpiece.

About the Author
Since penning this piece a few years ago, Robert Germaux has heeded his own advice and continued writing at that kitchen table. He is currently working on his 13^th book. You can find more information about Bob and his books at his Amazon Author Page.

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Leaving the LAW by Robert Germaux: Looking at JB’s Past as He Tries to Save a Kid’s Future

By HCNewton

On December 16, 2021

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Leaving the LAW

by Robert Germaux
Series: Jeremy Barnes, #4 (Chronologically #2)

Kindle Edition, 208 pg.
2021

Read: November 25-26, 2021
Grab a copy from your local indie bookstore!

As I drove away from the center, I thought about Asaan and Anthony and Franklin High School and the gangs. And scones. Food is never far from my mind, and I didn’t have anything else to do at the moment, so I drove home and parked the Camry in my driveway and walked to Starbucks. I can think and eat at the same time, a skill that I have demonstrated on numerous occasions. No need not to do so again.

What’s Leaving the LAW About?

Before Jeremy Barnes became a P.I., he was a teacher—a dedicated and idealistic one. Which is largely why he left the profession. The American education system is not a place for idealists. One student that he made an impact on comes back into his life fifteen years later.

Laretta Warren is now a single mother, doing her best. Laretta’s son, Anthony, is in a gang and is in real danger of legal problems if he doesn’t change direction. He’s also in real danger period. Laretta remembered how JB inspired her to keep going—now she wants him to inspire her son to get out of the gang and get on a better path.

JB has no illusions that he’s going to be able to make any difference. But he remembers Laretta’s spirit. He respects that, he wants to honor her wishes, and do what he can for her. Even if it’s to take on a Quixotic task.

While he tries to talk Anthony into wanting to leave, he knows it’ll take more than gaining his trust and then convincing him. So he sets out to gain leverage against the leader of the gang. As difficult as it will be to get Anthony to want to leave, that’s simpler than getting him out. He also needs to understand the gangs better—the landscape has changed a lot in the years since he taught high school.

This leads him to reconnect with the school’s Vice Principal, and his friends in the police department connect him with the officer who’ll be the most helpful—both the V.P. and police lead him to a community activist who is instrumental in keeping the peace between rival gangs in the area. JB learns a good deal about them and the way the leadership thinks—now, will it be enough?

JB and Laura

So, if you read this in order of publication, you already know where the relationship between JB and Laura is going—if you’re reading this chronologically, you met her in the previous book, and have a pretty good idea where it’s going.

Either way, their relationship is beyond the establishment stage, but they’re still figuring themselves out as a unit. One of the biggest things for Laura to reckon with is the violence that JB occasionally runs into. Is she prepared to deal with the stress and worry? Is it worth it? She’s still working her way through that—and it should take a little while.

Laura doesn’t often remind me of Susan Silverman (unlike JB, who constantly reminds me of Spenser), but she really does sound like her as she works her way through the danger inherent in JB’s work with Anthony. For what it’s worth, I think Laura deals with it a little better than Susan does early on, but it’s obviously a struggle for her.

So, what did I think about Leaving the LAW?

Once again, Germaux has delivered a thoroughly entertaining PI novel. Spending time in a Germaux novel (Jeremy Barnes or Daniel Hays) is a guaranteed good time with characters you can’t help but like.

I enjoyed getting more of a glimpse into JB”s past than we’ve gotten before—and the way he reacts to Laretta (both as he remembers her and as he observes her) is exactly how you want a teacher to respond to a student. It just makes a PI you already were invested in and was rooting for all the more likable.

I halfway expected the final reveal—but that didn’t stop it from being effective, it just made the most dramatic sense. I’d much rather a scene to be justified and successful than an out-of-blue surprise, anyway. Germaux satisfied that preference while delivering what I expected with a motivation that I didn’t expect.

I had a lot of fun with this book—good characters and prose that’s just smooth and easy reading. I’m about done with Germaux’s detective fiction—while I’m all for being a completionist, I’m not crazy about crossing that last one off my list. Thankfully, I have a few other books by him to get to.

3.5 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

Authorial Aspirations? Not So Much by Robert Germaux

By HCNewton

On October 4, 2021

In Books, Miscellany, News/Misc., Strolling Down Amnesia Lane

Strolling Down Amnesia Lane

Authorial Aspirations? Not So Much

by Robert Germaux

Okay, first, authorial? Really cool word, one I’d never come across until H.C.’s email giving me the outline for this guest post. You learn something new every day, right? And speaking of this guest post, travel with me back to 1996, when I was a tender lad of 50. Wait, no need to reach for the old abacus. I’ll save you the trouble. I’m old.

Getting back to the title of this piece, no, I had no authorial aspirations at that time. I was still three years away from taking advantage of an early retirement offer from the Pittsburgh Public Schools System, so the bulk of my “writing” that year consisted of the comments I wrote on the approximately 1500 student compositions I graded for my 9th and 11th grade English classes. Some of my students were very good writers, so the comments I wrote on their papers came pretty easily. On the other hand, many of my kids struggled with the process of transferring thoughts to paper, so after gently pointing out a few of their more egregious errors in spelling, grammar, syntax, etc., I also tried to add a positive note or two, which at times involved a certain degree of creativity on my part.

What was I reading in 1996? Well, that’s an entirely different situation. No matter how busy I was with my “schoolwork,” I always found time for recreational reading. I particularly enjoyed the detective series by Robert B. Parker, Michael Connelly, Sue Grafton (I think 1996 was M is for Malice) and Robert Crais, but I also loved reading P.G. Wodehouse’s Bertie and Jeeves stories, which my father had introduced me to when I was just sixteen or seventeen. Beyond books, I read magazines: Sports Illustrated, Time, People, Life, Ladies Home Journal (the only periodical my dentist had in his waiting room), TV Guide, etc. Basically, if you wrote it, I’d read it. And, of course, I always glanced through Pittsburgh’s two daily newspapers. (Sadly, today, the ‘Burgh, like so many other cities in this country, is a one-paper town.)

So, no writing back in ’96, other than the aforementioned composition comments. But shortly after I retired, my wife urged me to give writing a try. As usual, Cynthia’s suggestion was a good one, because now, here I am twelve books later, and although I didn’t realize it at the time, all that reading and grading of papers written by teenagers in 1996, along with the time I spent putting eyes on books, magazines, newspapers, heck, even billboards on drives across Pennsylvania to visit my wife’s family, all of that definitely played a part in preparing me for my post-teaching career as a writer. Of course, it wasn’t just 1996. It was also all the years before and since. It’s an ongoing process for all of us who write. It’s who we are. It’s how we’re hard-wired.

Twenty-five years from now, in 2046, when H.C. and his wife are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary (I recommend a cruise of the Mediterranean) and I’m turning 100, I’m sure I’ll still be reading and writing, maybe even submitting the occasional Senior’s Perspective guest post to The Irresponsible Reader.

Robert Germaux and his wife, Cynthia, live outside of Pittsburgh. After three decades as a high school English teacher and now more than twenty years into retirement, Bob is beginning to have serious doubts about his lifelong dream of pitching for the Pirates. While waiting for that call from the team’s GM, Bob has written five books about Pittsburgh private detective Jeremy Barnes, two books about Pittsburgh police detective Daniel Hayes (who hunts serial killers in the Steel City), and two stand-alone books: The Backup Husband (a romance with a twist) and Love Stories (a semibiographical novel based on the six weeks Cynthia spent in Europe when she was seventeen). In addition, with tongue planted firmly in cheek, Bob has written what he likes to call his Grammar Sex Trilogy, three collections of humorous essays.

You can find links to all of Bob’s books (and download free samples) at his Amazon Author Page.

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Small Bytes by Robert Germaux: Back to the Beginning of JB Barnes

By HCNewton

On July 6, 2021

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Small Bytes

by Robert Germaux
Series: Jeremy Barnes, #3 (Chronologically #1)

Kindle Edition, 286 pg.
2019

Read: July 5, 2021

Tony’s Bar and Grill was your typical local hangout. Located in a working-class neighborhood where everyone knew everyone else and their business, it had gone through several changes of ownership over the years, but the one constant had always been that strangers weren’t particularly welcome, and anyone who lived more than ten blocks away was a stranger.

I lived on the other side of town.

When I walked into Tony’s on a warm spring night, the place didn’t suddenly become silent, the way things happen in the movies, but there was a noticeable drop in the level of conversation.

What’s Small Bytes About?

JB’s oldest friend asks him to give one of her friends a call—her husband had recently been murdered, and she’s dissatisfied with what the police are telling her. Could JB look into things for her?

Terry Pendleton is shot outside his home on his way to work. The police (primarily a lazy and racist lead detective) have determined that it was a mugging gone wrong—despite no evidence of theft, or anything else, really. The widow and many of his colleagues deem that out of character—if a mugger had approached Pendleton demanding money, he’d have been given it all without a struggle.

Barnes isn’t convinced by Rachel Pendelton or the others at the firm, but he thinks there might be something to it. Once he meets the lead detective, JB wants to prove him wrong just out of distaste for the man. But before he really gets anywhere at all in the investigation, a man with ties to organized crime warns JB from continuing to look into things.

JB has no idea what he might be getting into, but at this point, he sure knows it’s something…

Not Technically a Prequel

In the Author’s Note before Chapter 1, Germaux says this was the first he wrote in the series, but he published books #4 and #5 in the series first. So this serves as a prequel, if you go in publication order—not something I’m used to seeing in a P.I. series, but it works.

I think I would have guessed that this was the first JB Barnes that he wrote even if he hadn’t said it. There’s something—maybe just confidence, maybe just the experience of having written other complete novels, probably something else—that’s missing from this that was present in Hard Court or In the Eye.

I’m Not Sure About that Title

There are only so many things that “Bytes” can apply to. As this is a Detective Novel, you know some sort of cybercrime is involved—at the very least some sort of electronic data is going to be very important to the P.I. wrapping things up.

When there is zero discussion of anything along those lines (at least in reference to JB’s case), it’s hard to believe that he’s uncovering anything that matters up until a related concept shows up.

Thankfully, the book was interesting, the characters were engaging and the subplots were compelling, and JB’s narrative voice keeps you turning pages. So even while wondering when we were going to get anything computer-related, I was enjoying things. Still, that title doesn’t do the text any favors.

So, what did I think about Small Bytes?

Along the way, I dropped the envelope in a mailbox and thought about what Uncle Leo had told me the day I’d first expressed an interest in joining him in the business. The most important thing, he’d said, was learning to balance the highs and the lows, “‘cause you’re gonna have both, the good and the bad. Ya gotta learn to balance them, son, or the demons’ll be dancin’ in your head way too many nights.”

I’m still learning.

With both of Germaux’s series—the Jeremy Barnes and Daniel Hays books—I’ve said that each book feels like you’re returning to a well-established series that you’ve been reading for a while. And, given the order he wrote these books in, that makes sense. But even Small Bytes feels like it’s not the beginning, but something mid-series. Sure, this is a turning point in the series, but there’s no sense of Germaux introducing people and relationships, just picking up where he left off. I really appreciate that.

Small Bytes is a fun read, and I’m glad I read it, but I’m glad it’s not the first book I read by Germaux or about JB. But even here at the beginning, I want to stress, there are a few passages that just sing. Germaux has the knack for spinning a solid PI tale and captures the feel, voice, and style of the best of the genre.

Which is why I’ll be back for the others in the series soon—and why I’ll jump on anything else Germaux has in store for JB, and why I’ll suggest you give him a try, too.

GUEST POST: Why Do We Write? by Robert Germaux

By HCNewton

On April 2, 2021

In Fiction

Why Do We Write?

So, again, why do we write? Personally, I didn’t begin writing until I’d retired after three decades of teaching high school English, and it wasn’t until a good many years (and a bunch of books) later that I felt comfortable telling people I was a writer, as opposed to a retired teacher. Why do I write? Well, I can assure you it’s not for the money. At this moment, I have nine books on Amazon: five mysteries, two love stories and two collections of humorous essays. My books sell for $2.99, which means that after Amazon dips its beak, my cut is a hefty $2.05 for every sale. So that 50^th wedding anniversary cruise of the Mediterranean my wife and I were lucky enough to take just before the pandemic hit was courtesy of our teacher pensions and social security, not the man of the house’s book royalties.

I hope you’re in that minority of writers who not only have to write, but also actually like what you do. My experience has been that, unfortunately, most people don’t really enjoy their work. If you’re a writer, you’re already in a select group of people with skills that appear to be rapidly diminishing in our society. So take advantage of your talent. Have fun with it. Use it to form those connections with others. It may be frustrating at times (especially in the middle of the night when you turn on the light and awaken your ever-understanding and supportive spouse because you just figured out whodunit), but trust me, you’ll feel much better the next day, when you write that final chapter in your latest masterpiece.

About the Author

Robert Germaux is currently hard at work at that kitchen table, putting the finishing touches on Grammar Sex 3, his third book of humorous essays. At least, he hopes they’re humorous. You can find more information about Bob and his books at his Amazon Author Page.

Small Talk by Robert Germaux: A Fledgling Task Force on the Hunt for a Serial Killer on the Streets of Pittsburgh

By HCNewton

On April 2, 2021

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

So this is going to be Robert Germaux day here, apparently. I’ve got this post about Small Talk and Germaux was kind enough to give me a Guest Post and to do a Q&A with me, all of which is coming along shortly. Hope you enjoy this as much as I did.

Small Talk

by Robert Germaux
Series: A Daniel Hays Mystery, Book 1

Kindle Edition, 266 pg.
2015

Read: March 24-25, 2021

What’s Small Talk About?

The area around Pittsburgh, we’re told early in this book, is made up of a vast number of local jurisdictions that are fiercely independent and don’t necessarily cooperate too well with each other—even when it comes to crimes being committed in various jurisdictions. After one recent crime spree took too much of a toll and had too little cooperation between various law enforcement agencies, a Special Assignment Squad answering directly to the Chief of Police is formed to deal with crimes of that type.

This team’s first real trial comes some weeks after its formation when a series of young women are being strangled. There’s no sexual assault, no robbery, simply a strangulation. There’s no connection—appearance, socio-economic status, profession, location—between the victims. If there’s anything not random about the selection of the victims, no one can see it.

Daniel Hays, the head of the SAS, is the lead investigator on the first murder before it’s officially a SAS matter. But it doesn’t take him long to assume that there will be another —probably many—after looking at the evidence, scene, and victim. Sadly, he’s proven correct fairly shortly. As more and more victims are found, it’s clear that the killer is getting more brazen, and the pressure—from within and from outside the SAS—increases.

The Killer’s Perspective

97 times out of one hundred, I’d rather not get the killer’s perspective (either told in first or third person) as well as the detective’s. I’m clearly in the minority, however, even judging solely on how frequently we’re given this setup.

Germaux handles this device as well as anyone could want. It does add a little to the novel and helps us understand the killer better than we would if we only had Daniel’s perspective. It also helped me to really dislike the character—you know, in case randomly killing women wasn’t enough. The guy is too impressed with himself, he’s a showoff and a blowhard with a penchant for monologuing (to himself or others). Some of that goes with the territory, obviously, but there’s something about him I liked even less than your typical budding serial killer.

For example, unless something is wrong with you, you’re charmed by Lecter in Silence of the Lambs—yes, he’s a deranged killer that needs to be kept away from people, but you can’t help but like the guy. Robert B. Parker gives us the killer’s POV in Crimson Joy, and all I wanted was for him to be stopped—I don’t know if I ever cared about him one way or the other. But this guy? I actively disliked him, in addition to wanting Hays and the team to get him off the streets.

Advantages/Disadvantages of Reading this Now

I almost never read books out of order anymore—I used to do it all the time, but now my default mode is: Start at Book 1 and move forward. But because it was for a book tour, I read the second Daniel Hays novel first. It was nice to see that gripes and questions I had while reflecting on One by One had been anticipated and dealt with in these pages.

The downside is that there are some things that didn’t hold as much suspense for me because I knew the status of various characters in the sequel. There was one scene that held absolutely no suspense for me, and I regretted that lack as I read it. Thankfully, Germaux still handled that scene in a way I didn’t expect him to, so while it came with the resolution I expected, the journey to it was a nice surprise.

So, what did I think about Small Talk?

Before I wrote this post, I read what I said about the sequel just to compare the two. Plot-specifics aside, I could have just re-used that post here.

Small Talk has an interesting and solid approach to the Serial Killer, some nice twists, and a good group of core characters.

Professionals who treat each other as professionals, with respect and camaraderie. It could be made slightly more interesting or challenging if there were a bit more friction in the team or spillover from Daniel’s personal life (for example). But that’s only marginally more interesting.

I do wish there was a greater sense of urgency to this. The SAS is driven to find the killer, but they’re not obsessive about it. They clock out at the end of the day, go home and bake, or go on a date, or something else. And as nice as those side stories were, and as realistic as it might be, it’s somewhat dissatisfying when it comes to drama.

Like with all of Germaux’s writing, there’s a pleasantness to reading this. No matter how dire things may be, the book is just a pleasant experience. It’s a fast, gratifying read with some fun moments and justice prevailing. It’s hard to go wrong with that.

I recommend this—like all of Germaux’s Crime Fiction—especially if you’re not in the mood for gritty depictions of police detectives going about their work. In my earlier post, I compared them to “blue sky” dramas like NCIS, Burn Notice, or White Collar, and the same is true here. And sometimes that’s just what the doctor ordered.

3.5 Stars

In the Eye by Robert Germaux: Barnes hunts for a missing woman in a solid PI novel

By HCNewton

On July 17, 2019

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

If you’d asked me last week, I’d have said that this was the third book featuring the private eye Jeremy Barnes. Apparently, it’s the second. I’d have insisted I read two others, however — but my archives, Amazon and Germaux’s website tell me I’m wrong. I’ve also read one of the two books he’s written about Pittsburgh Police Detective Daniel Hayes. With both series, you almost instantly feel like you’re returning to a beloved series that you’ve been reading for years. Already this week, we’ve seen the grittier side of Indie Crime fiction — but here’s another side, light, action-driven, character-oriented, dialogue-heavy. Or, to put it another way — fun.

I read another author last week complain that when his work is characterized as “light” it’s frequently taken as a criticism — so I want to stress that I don’t mean it that way at all. I mean it as a compliment — pleasant, quick, entertaining.

I’m getting off topic and this intro is now far too long — so I’ll shut up now and get on with talking about this particular Indie Crime novel.
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In the Eye

by Robert Germaux
Series: Jeremy Barnes, #2

Kindle Edition, 272 pg.
2018
Read: July 12 – 13, 2019

I hung my jacket on the brass coat rack in one corner of the loft, then sat at my desk for a few minutes going through the snail mail that had accumulated since my last time there. There were three checks for services rendered, all of them for background checks I’d run on job applicants for local business owners. The background checks hadn’t taken me very long, which was reflected in the fees I’d charged. Still, three checks in one day. Maybe I should hire an accountant. I glanced down at the checks again. They totaled a little over five-hundred dollars. Maybe hold off on that accountant thing awhile.

Pittsburgh PI, Jeremy Barnes (call him JB), is in the office this day to meet a prospective client. The love of her life is missing, and she assumes — insists it has to be — foul play. JB (like his mentor) doesn’t like missing persons work — it’s too easy for things to go very wrong. But something about this woman’s plight moves him to accept the case. It doesn’t take JB long to reach the same conclusion — she didn’t leave on her own, and she’s not coming back on her own either. As this is a lesbian couple in a pretty conservative small town, JB doesn’t expect a lot of police help (especially once he learns a little about the Chief) — there’s one officer who is doing everything he can, his hands are tied. It’s all up to JB.

JB, a former high school English teacher, is a pretty good character. He’s got the right balance of smarts, toughness and wise cracks to qualify as a PI protagonist. His girlfriend and friends are as charming and interesting as he is. Basically, they’re characters you want to read about. Either hanging out after work or on the job, they’re a lot of fun. I do think the criminals in this book — and those who think like them — are depicted shallowly, and are largely unfair stereotypes. Far too much time is devoted to JB taking cheap verbal shots at them (in the narration or to their face). But the rest of the characters — witnesses, other police officers, friends of the victim — are well done, and add to the story rather than slowing things down or detracting from the pacing.

A quick aside — I appreciated the way that JB’s girlfriend Laura asks about getting too absorbed with a missing persons case and his answer. I wanted to ask her question of JB myself (and a few other PIs, too). More than that, I really liked his answer.

Robert B. Parker’s shadow is a long one in contemporary American Detective Fiction, as I’m sure is news to no one. Robert Crais, Dennis Lehane, Craig Johnson all are clearly influenced by Parker (even Jim Butcher’s work had RBP’s fingerprints all over it) — but few show their indebtedness to him as obviously as Robert Germaux. This is not a bad thing, this is just an observation. If you’re going to be standing on someone’s shoulders, might as well be the best. It was easy to see in Hard Court, but there are times in this book where I felt I was being hit over the head with it. If I was feeling uncharitable, I could describe this as a watered-down update of Looking for Rachel Wallace with a tiny bit of God Save the Child thrown in. But it’s a pleasant-enough read that I don’t want to be uncharitable — so I’ll just say that the novel wears its influences on its sleeve.

And it is pleasant to read, sometimes with crime fiction, it’s hard to remember that this is a hobby I pursue for pleasure. But with JB’s narration, it’s all about enjoying the ride. I wish more people could pull that off. In the Eye is firmly in the P.I. vein, but isn’t so hard-boiled that someone accustomed to reading cozies couldn’t slip right in. While it’s the second in the series, you don’t have to read them in order — you can (and I’d encourage you to) jump right in anywhere. This is a fun read with a cast of characters you want to spend time with — I’m willing to bet it’s re-readable, too. It inspired me to give the first JB book another read (not sure when I’ll find the time, but I want to).

For a fast, easy read that’s sure to please, In the Eye is just what the doctor ordered.

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3 Stars

Open Apology to Susan Barton and Robert Germaux

By HCNewton

On July 21, 2017

In Book Tour, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Public screw up, public apology.

I’ve been out of town for a couple of days (roughly 5 pm Tuesday to 11:40pm Thursday) for some medical screening and evaluations for one of my kids (long story, not that relevant, but if you’re super curious, feel free to check out The Backup Kidney blog). To help keep things alive during that time, I signed up for a couple of Book Tours — posts that are pretty much prepared by someone else, and can be scheduled well ahead of time.

One of those was for the entertaining read, One by One by Robert Germaux, as put together by Susan Barton. Those posts went up Thursday, technically yesterday now. Monday while packing, I finished putting those together, got them scheduled to post and checked another item off my pre-trip To Do list, and thought no more about them.

They looked fine, everything worked in Preview mode.

Then this morning, somewhere between a chest X-Ray and an echocardiogram (I’m not exactly sure when), I got an email from Ms. Barton that things weren’t looking right — no images were showing up — and could I please fix that. Well, no, I was on a spotty and slow connection with only my phone — I really couldn’t even get a reply composed given all that was going on. I was 400+ miles and 13-14 hours away from being able to sit down and fix things.

I don’t know what happened, again, it all looked good Monday night. I didn’t bother to troubleshoot — I just uploaded the files with different names and changed the coding on the posts. I believe things are displaying correctly now. I sure hope so. If not, I’ll try again as soon as I get home from work tomorrow — and then, I don’t know, try self-immolation.

I’ve given the explanation, now the apology — I’m very sorry, Ms. Barton and Mr. Germaux. I said I’d do something and I didn’t deliver. The “irresponsible” in the blog title is supposed to mean that I read whatever, with only a regard for what catches my eye, not in an effort to better myself or be literary or live up to whatever standard — it’s not supposed to be an ethic.

GIVEAWAY: One by One by Robert Germaux

By HCNewton

On July 20, 2017

In Book Tour, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

We hope you’ve enjoyed these posts today, and are interested in the book. Click here to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway for One by One by Robert Germaux