Book Review: The Front Range Butcher by R. Weir

*I received a complimentary copy of this book, and I’m leaving a voluntary review*

P.I. Jarvis Mann has a new case. Or an old one, depending on how you look at it. When his ex-girlfriend’s father wants to meet with him, Jarvis is nervous as first. But when he tells Jarvis that The Front Range Butcher, the serial killer from twenty years ago is back at it, Jarvis is more than keen to get on with the case.

This is probably the most ‘investigative’ crime thriller I’ve ever read. Jarvis is a P.I., and he’s damn good at it. We get to see a lot of his world, meet his friends and contacts, watch him pick up on favors, and follow him as he follows the leads. The book is long and sometimes very slow paced, but only because Jarvis actually does a lot of investigating. I can imagine many other version of people writing this book where Jarvis instantly would have been thrown into life-threatening action. (And I’m not saying he isn’t here). I’m just saying he actually does what he’s supposed. Weir has put a huge amount of work into creating a huge, vivid world, the kind I’d expect from fantasy writers. In one sense, I feel like I know this world, as if I’ve gotten used to it, I understand it, even though this is the first Jarvis Mann book I read. There’s something familiar about it, in the way that it pulls you in.

There’s a myriad of plot lines to follow here, threads to pull and connect, and on top of it all Jarvis is trying to keep up with his social life. Usually I’d say this book is a bit too sexy for me, because Jarvis is the definition of a lady-killer and a hound if ever there was one. But it’s so integral to his character, such a huge part of his being and the plot that I didn’t give it a second thought after a while.

There’s so much going in this book, I’ve nearly forgot about the most important thing. The Butcher. Active around twenty years ago, his M.O. was to skin people alive and deliver the remains to the doorstep of loved ones. Now he’s back. But can it really be the same person? And why is Jarvis constantly met with roadblocks and threats during his investigation?

I realized I recognized this book, after a while. Not because I’ve read it before, or because the plot is similar to anything. But because, this is the exact kind of book my father always read. The kind of staple thriller, that always sells everywhere, never falling out of fashion. My father would always have one with him, at the airport, on a train, on our holidays. It was a happy little memory when I realized.

I’d absolutely recommend this book to anyone who’s a fan of the genre. You won’t be disappointed. Go check it out here.