Charlie Shaw is low on sleep. And cash. Otherwise, life is going pretty well for the ex-crime reporter: he’s happily married to his college sweetheart, he’s a first-time dad to the most adorable baby girl in existence, and he’s making ends meet as a rookie PI. But when Charlie meets Friday Finley, a frightened sixteen-year-old runaway on a stakeout-gone-wrong, his world gets a little more complicated.
Friday is looking for her estranged father Shawn, an unreliable alcoholic who left when she was young—and who also happens to be her only shot at avoiding the foster care system since her mother’s death a few weeks earlier. At first, Charlie believes the man is simply hiding out somewhere, avoiding his responsibilities as usual, but the more he investigates, the more unsettling—and dangerous—Shawn’s disappearance becomes. When his own family is threatened, Charlie realizes he’s in over his head, but can he back out now that he’s begun to care for Friday as his own?
If you have read Dashiell Hammett and/or Raymond Carver, then this is a lighter version of them, in my honest opinion. Tat observation is mainly in the way the main character Charlie Shaw conducts himself. He’s not too serious, but he’s not overly joking either. There were serious moments and then there were the funny moments.
Overall, I rate this novel 5 out of 5 stars, however I will say that I was surprised this was the debut novel. There are times, especially between Charlie and Ryan where I felt like the reader was missing something, almost like the reader should be aware of how their relationship began. Honestly, I would have loved that, because their dialogue and interactions are a big part of why this novel was so fun to read.
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