An investigative reporter just getting back on his emotional feet after a divorce looks into accusations of match fixing within a local football club and ends up framed for a violent crime.
I had a hard time starting this novel. Every time I settled in for a long reading session, something or someone interrupted me and I had to go back to the beginning. Finally, though, I got to read the whole thing. So glad I did. I know nothing about Nordic Noir mysteries, but if MATCH GAMES is the general example, I'll be seeking out more of them.
Lukas Novak is big and gruff...and idealistic and so innocent that he brings tears to your eyes. Life has hurt this man in many ways, but he still believes in honor and being decent to people, even people who might not necessarily deserve the consideration he's so quick to offer. What starts as a tentative exploration into illegal gambling charges that may or may not add up to a real story, dumps Lukas in a too real mess. With a couple of probing questions, he ends up on the wrong side of crooked cops, vicious gangsters, and sports hoodlums of the worst kind. Over the course of the novel the stakes for Lukas escalate--first his freedom is threatened, then his life, then the lives of those he loves most.
Luckily Lukas isn't alone. His helpers include Mark, a disgraced (and seriously demented) former police officer, and Dannii, a Renaissance Woman football blogger who's mastered everything from computer code to spelunking to higher mathematics. Author Bea Schirmer does an amazing job with all of her characters. They are so fluid in their allegiances and mixed up in their motives. You're never really sure who you (or Lukas) can count on. Good guys aren't always good, and bad guys sometimes come through for the right side.
The setting--Northern England--is used to great effect. From gritty housing estates to majestic scenic spots, place is integral to building character, establishing mood, and pushing the plot forward. At one point, Lukas, Mark, and Dannii are on the run from police during a blizzard. Their car is totaled during the chase. How will they deal with the elements AND put distance between themselves and the authorities? The answer revolves around a complicated network of caverns and offers an incredible (and claustrophobic) series of action scenes.
The mystery at the center of Match Games isn't complicated per sea. Nor is identifying who is behind it all. What is a puzzle is figuring out the true motivations driving all of the shenanigans. There are so many twists and reversals. Even the bad guys can't trust one another. The plot turns continue all the way to the end. Every time I thought, AH! This is it! A character did something completely unexpected and the wild ride was on again.
I had two tiny issues with the book. One, I wish Dannii's age had been established sooner and more clearly. Two, and this could be a factor of the Kindle formatting, there were some missing scene breaks. So at times it took me a moment to realize that we were in a new scene.
Overall, MATCH GAMES is a fantastic book. Schirmer may show us an ugly side of the sporting world, but she populates that world with fascinating people. You can't help but want to spend time with them.
OR
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- Reviewed in the United States on November 3, 2016Format: Kindle
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- Match GamesReviewed in the United Kingdom on December 31, 2014
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