Review: The Stein & Candle Detective Agency: Cold Wars

The Stein & Candle Detective Agency: Cold Wars by Michael Panush

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Book Info: Genre: Paranormal Noir Mystery/Action/Adventure Reading Level: Adult (has YA character, probably appropriate for readers as young as MG w/ violence warning)

Disclosure: I received a free eBook copy of this novel from Curiosity Quills (the publisher) in exchange for an honest review

Synopsis: A wealthy Hawaiian hotelier is chewed to death by sharks – in his penthouse office. A traveling salesman goes missing – in a shady New England town full of monstrous fishmen. A new casino gets supernaturally good luck in Vegas – thanks to ancient Egyptian magic.

These are the cases taken by Morton Candle and Weatherby Stein. Mort’s a hardboiled ex-paratrooper turned two-gun shamus. Weatherby’s a fourteen-year-old wiz kid and heir to the greatest family of European sorcerers.

They met in the fury of WWII, when Weatherby and his parents were being held hostage by the Third Reich and Mort’s squad was sent to bust them out. Now they’re a pair of private detectives specializing in the paranormal, the supernatural and the just plain weird.

But sometimes, arcane evil goes back a long way and a dangerous force from deep in the past of Stein’s family is about rise. Weatherby and Mort will put everything they have into stopping it – and it might not be enough

My Thoughts: I read and reviewed the first book in this series, The Stein & Candle Detective Agency: American Nightmares, 4/15/12, and really got a kick out of it. Additionally, I read this author’s book Dinosaur Jazz 8/3/12 – Michael Panush is a very talented young writer (he’s only 22) and based upon his work so far, I predict great things for him ahead. Thanks to Curiosity Quills for bringing us fresh, young talent like this, to entertain and edify.

Again, this book is a series of episodes where Candle and Stein solve occult crimes and fight paranormal creatures. Fans of Lovecraft will cheer over their adventure in Innsmouth, and the entire book has Cthulhian images scattered throughout. Included among the cases are a story about Candle’s military unit rescuing Stein, and the story of how Candle and Stein teamed up as a detective agency.

There are a number of editing errors, but the stories are fast-paced and, like the first book, full of pulpy goodness. Suspension of disbelief is required, but it is an enjoyable read. If you enjoyed the first book, don’t miss this one!



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