Rating: 
Summary: No surprises
Review: There is a prototypical hero who has become all but generic. He is clever, often a lawyer, has more moxie than muscle; he is an honorable man, determined to keep his word at all costs. He always has a "partner" who's a behemoth type, big and brawny and techno-savvy. And these two buddies toss banter back and forth while in the midst of life-and-death situations. Then there's the love interest; she's lovely and wise and wounded. The hero and his cohorts vary only in locale. Dog Island's setting is Florida, with side trips back to our hero, Tom McInnes's, home base in Mobile. One of the primary features of books featuring these types of characters is an endless itinerary; we get the names of every highway between Mobile and Appalachicola, as well as routes to anywhere else McInnes has to go. I've often wondered why so many mystery writers feel compelled to give endless details (like AAA trip maps) of where they're going and how they get there.There are a couple of crusty old ex-military coots who come in very handy, a mysterious hispanic fellow of great charm (with good suits), a sexually abused teenager who teeters on the edge of believability, and everything is set in motion by this teenager's witnessing a murder. Mike Stewart writes well; the narrative jogs along at a steady clip. But there's really nothing new here. A few scenes work really well, offering an insight into the kind of work Mr. Stewart could produce if he spent less time describing highways and more time on creating characters with depth. It's a quick and easy book to read, but memorable it isn't. There's too much formula, too many almost-stock characters, and too little resolution. Perhaps the next book will show the results of a bit more hard work and some deeper thought.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but not as good as first, less belivable
Review: This book is good, but not as good as the first. By the end of this book these characters are worn out and its time that he strays from the using the Tom McInnes clan in his books. Despite lackluster characters, his mastery of dialogue, description and plot keep this a very good book. It's sad though, because I look on this sight and see that his next book once again has Tom McInnes and his buddies, who are just to worn out to be effective characters. Hopefully his book after A Clean Kill will have new characters and new situations.
Rating: 
Summary: I'm hooked!
Review: When I learned that fellow law school classmate Mike Stewart had written a book, I just had to read it. Little did I know that 'Sins of the Brother' would be one of my favorite books of all time. Naturally, I snapped up 'Dog Island' as soon as I could get my hands on it. It didn't let me down. I can't wait for Mike Stewart to publish #3!
Rating:
Summary: I'm hooked!
Review: When I learned that fellow law school classmate Mike Stewart had written a book, I just had to read it. Little did I know that 'Sins of the Brother' would be one of my favorite books of all time. Naturally, I snapped up 'Dog Island' as soon as I could get my hands on it. It didn't let me down. I can't wait for Mike Stewart to publish #3!
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