- Hardcover: 272 pages
- Publisher: Doubleday (April 14 1997)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0385485239
- ISBN-13: 978-0385485234
- Product Dimensions: 22.9 x 15.7 x 2.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 476 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon
Mali Anderson used to be a cop, until she punched out a fellow officer for sexual slurs; now she's working toward a Ph.D. in social work, raising her orphaned nephew, and living with her jazz musician father on a street in Harlem nicknamed Strivers Row because of the black professionals who owned property there. She has a full, rich life--especially when you add a budding romance with a former colleague. But Mali puts it all at risk when she interrupts a kidnapping and finds a dead body outside the Uptown Children's Chorus building. The crimes are connected to both sides of Harlem: the aspirations of citizens like Mali and her father, and the more notorious elements of crack and police corruption. What links both sides is family, and in her first mystery, Edwards expertly creates characters who leap to instant, long-remembered life.
From School Library Journal
YA. After her sister dies, Mall assumes the responsibility of raising her 11-year-old, orphaned nephew, Alvin. Protective of him, the woman and her Great Dane walk to Harlem's renowned Uptown Children's Chorus to meet the boy after his choral practice, only to hear a child screaming. Running to the rescue, Mall grabs the screaming child from a car but can do nothing to save the man lying in the street with a bullet hole in his forehead. As a former police officer, Mall puts her detecting skills to use to find the murderer of Alvin's chorus director. The depressingly blah, sepia-toned book jacket detracts from the fine mystery inside. Mall is a strong, likable character who combines common sense with humor; her African-American heritage might appeal to mystery readers who may not have identified with the heroines created by Sara Paretsky and Sue Grafton.?Pam Spencer, Fairfax County Public Schools, VA
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Customer Reviews
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Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Mali's on the Case,
By busylady (Riverdale, IL United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: If I Should Die (Mass Market Paperback)
Unknowingly I have read this series of novels out of sequence, I thought "A toast before Dying" was the first one, but it doesn't matter because I love the series. Mali Anderson former cop now neighborhood "Protector" is a wonderful addition to the genre and Grace Edward's is a gifted writer and wordsmith. I can only compare her style to that of Walter Mosely, which is the ultimate compliment because he is phenomenal. Edwards is able to convey a myraid of thoughts with just a few words but the feelings they evoke never miss their mark. This mystery starts with the attempted kidnapping of a member of the Harlem Chorus and the death of the director, who is an old friend of Mali's. She witnesses the incident and is able to save the child but arrives to late to help her old friend. Now she is determined not to rest until she finds out who is behind his senseless murder and enlists the help of her new boyfriend and hunk Detective Tad Honeywell. Well girl does not live my adventure alone and Honeywell is just what Mali needs and deserves. The police are investigating but Tad has been taken off the case and the new detective assigned is not very dedicated to getting results. Mali has her work cut out for her on this one as clues point her to the seedy side of Harlem and to dealings with people we would rather believe did not exist.
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Real Page-turner,
By A Customer
This review is from: If I Should Die (Mass Market Paperback)
This was my introduction to Grace F. Edwards. I love way she develops the characters. Mali is a sister with attitude, compassion, strength, love for family, and just enough over-confidence to get herself into trouble. I enjoyed walking the streets of Harlem, visiting some places I used to know. I was captivated from the first page, and was kept guessing on to the end.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Well Done,
By MarvelousMarla "MarvyM" (Way down in Dixie) - See all my reviews
This review is from: If I Should Die (Mass Market Paperback)
This book was my introduction to the Mali Anderson series, and I was impressed. The lead character is smart, tough and a loving daughter and aunt. Like Valerie Wesley Wilson's Tamara Hayle, Mali is also a former cop. But unlike Hayle, who is based in New Jersey, Anderson is not a formal PI. She's just trying to get some answers.Set on the mean streets of Harlem, this is a fast-paced contemporary mystery that engages the reader. Anderson is a complex character who is fraught by all types of demons -- harassment stemming from a lawsuit against the NYPD, the brutal death of her only sister and its impact on her nephew, and her feelings for the gorgeous detective Tad Honeywell. The bad guys are all delightfully vile, an array of drug dealers, petty thieves and thugs. As a native New Yorker, I got a kick out her descriptions of Mayor Giuliani (whom she doesn't mention by name) when he was the D.A. I remember when he lead a mob of police officers in a disrespectful rally outside Gracie Mansion when Dinkins was mayor. Her description of "The Inferno" reminded me of that scene in Jungle Fever where Spike Lee recreated a crack house. It was graphic and palpable. My only gripe with the book is that the ending seems a little abrupt. Edwards did a good job with the build-up, dropping clues here and there, but the resolution seemed a little rushed. Overall, I was satisfied with this book and plan to buy more of this series.
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