Family Values

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Summary: Mario Balzic comes out of retirement&handle a special case
Review: It has been two years since Mario Balzic retired as police chief of the Rocksberg, Pennsylvania police department and has literally driven everyone to drink. His spouse cannot wait for him to leave the home. His friends hope that he will not come by to visit them. Even the local bartender does not really want his business because he is tired of Mario biting his ear off. However, all that changes when the District Attorney asks Mario to come out of retirement to investigate a special case. Seventeen years ago, a drug deal went bad and two pushers were killed. The man convicted of the crime, Lester Walin, insists that he is innocent and has proof to back his claim. It seems he has a photograph of him being in bed with his step-mother during the time the crime allegedly occurred. Walin clearly places his conviction at the hands of his father, a stroke victim former police officer. Other prisoners make the same loud claim. As Balzic investigates he realizes that there may be some truth to what Lester and others are claiming. One of the basic laws of the universe is that any Mario Balzic tale is worth reading. The latest one, FAMILY VALUES, continues in that time honored tradition of being a great novel. In his baker dozenth Balzic tale, K.C. Constantine demonstrates that he is constantly one of the best writers today, showing insights into his characters that make his novels appeal to psychodrama lovers and mystery fans. Harriet Klausner

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Summary: Wading through mud!
Review: This is the third Mario Balzic mystery I've read, and I just don't see what the fuss is about. Reading the dialog in one of K.C. Constantine's books is like wading through thick mud...constant effort until it becomes tiresome in the extreme. Family Values has a 7-page-long fight between Mario and his wife, Ruth...replete with wannas, wouldas and 'causes...well, let me put it in K.C.'s/Mario's lingo: Geez, I shoulda thrown the book out!