Narrated by Nick J. Russo
Defying Logic is the 5th book in Nicky James’ Valor and Doyle series. This book, and therefore this review, deals with the aftermath of events in the previous book and will contain major spoilers for that book. The series follows one couple throughout and the relationship is developed over the course of the books. I highly recommend starting with book 1, Temporary Partner. You won’t be disappointed.
Defying Logic picks up two months after the events in Inevitable Disclosure. Aslan has been on leave since he was forced to shoot and kill 12 year old Columbo, a troubled youth who had murdered his sister and was threatening Aslan’s partner, Torin. At first Aslan thought he was doing well and was eager to get back to work once cleared for duty. Unfortunately, when actually faced with picking up a gun again, and everything that entails, he opts to take his accumulated leave instead. Aslan knows he had no choice but to shoot Columbo, but now he’s struggling with PTSD and barely hanging on to his hard won sobriety. It’s not helping that he’s feeling guilty Torin got hurt, and is now avoiding his calls.
Quaid knows how much Aslan is struggling, but he also knows there isn’t much he can do besides love and support him as he works things out. Plus Quaid has another problem. He’s dealing with a new partner, rookie detective Jordyn Frawley, who he’s struggling to like, much less work with. She’s prickly and defensive, and while Quaid understands her position as a young female detective in male-oriented field, he also has no patience with her antagonistic attitude. The fact that he’s not a fan of change, and misses his former partner Eden, makes it that much more challenging. Quaid knows he’s not easy to like, but doesn’t understand why his boss thinks he and Frawley are “well suited because they’re so similar.”
Quaid’s and Frawley’s first case together is the disappearance of Duncan, an active, healthy man in his early 80’s who seems to have simply vanished. When interviews with friends and neighbors, along with TV pleas for information, yields no leads, Quaid is forced to put the search on the back burner when a new case lands on their desks.
This new case involves the disappearance of Holly, a 26 yr old dental student who has failed to show up for her job at a local dental clinic for the past few days. Interviews with neighbors and work colleagues, as well as Holly’s professors, show that Holly seems to be a loner, and while brilliant, she’s more than a little “scatterbrained.” But even as he and Frawley are spinning their wheels hoping to get a break, Quaid has a nagging feeling that they’re missing something. Eventually he remembers the odd numbers recently painted by Holly’s door. When they double check Duncan’s apartment, they also find different but similarly placed numbers beside his door. While it doesn’t explain the disappearances, it suggests the cases are linked. After a third disappearance, this time a teen girl, and a third set of numbers, Quaid and Frawley know they’re dealing with related cases. Frustratingly, however, they can’t seem to find anything else to tie them together.
The mystery is clever and convoluted, with dead ends, purposeful misdirections, and scant evidence to work with. It takes everything Frawley and Quaid have to start piecing it together. But while the mystery is excellent, it also serves as a backdrop for a lot more story, and much of that story involves relationships. Besides Quaid and Aslan, Aslan is dealing with his own PTSD, his relationship with his partner Torin, and even his relationship with his brother-in-law. Quaid and Frawley’s antagonism isn’t helping them solve the mystery, but that means they have to figure out how to communicate and work as a team. Quaid’s fledgling friendship with Ruis, the IT guru, is also touched on. Relationships, interdependencies, and change are central themes in both the mystery plot, and Aslan’s journey towards recovery.
Anyone familiar with this series on audio already knows Nick J. Russo has done a stellar job on every book so far, and this one is no exception. He has been consistent in voicing all the major and minor recurring characters throughout the series. And he’s an accomplished voice actor who infuses realistic emotions into his reading. Aslan, who has always been strong and even a little arrogant, is now diffident at times, hesitant and unsure, and we hear it all in Mr. Russo’s excellent delivery. Quaid is still growling and sneering, but he’s also more confident in his relationship with Aslan and is now the rock holding them together, and again, Mr. Russo conveys this brilliantly. He does excellent female voices, as well, including a haughty professor and a shy teen girl. My only minor quibble is that his accents for Holly’s English parents are a little shaky, but honestly not too bad.
Defying Logic contains a complicated and twisty mystery which the author skillfully intertwines with Aslan’s struggle back to emotional and mental health. There are many moving pieces to this novel, and many tangled threads. Ms. James deftly handles them all and weaves them into a seamless story. This isn’t just a mystery, or just a romance, or just a recovery story – this is all that and more, and the narration by Mr. Russo only adds to the enjoyment.
Carrie
Buy Defying Logic by Nicky James on Amazon
