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"Witty, sophisticated, suspenseful and endless fun...the best first novel I've read this year." -Washington Post
The man who calls himself David Loogan is hoping to escape a violent past by living a quiet, anonymous life in Ann Arbor, Michigan. But when he's hired as an editor at a mystery magazine, he is drawn into an affair with the sleek blond wife of the publisher, Tom Kristoll-a man who soon turns up dead.
Elizabeth Waishkey is the most talented detective in the Ann Arbor Police Department, but even she doesn't know if Loogan is a killer or an ally who might help her find the truth. As more deaths start mounting up-some of them echoing stories published in the magazine-it's up to Elizabeth to solve both the murders and the mystery of Loogan himself.
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Harry Dolan graduated from Colgate University, where he majored in philosophy and studied fiction-writing with the novelist Frederick Busch. He earned a master’s degree in philosophy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and currently works as a freelance editor. He grew up in Rome, New York, and now lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan, with his partner Linda Randolph.
AIM78
Posted October 21, 2011
I'm an avid mystery reader who shies away from the mickie dees of mystery novel writers (whom shall remain nameless). Bad Things Happen moved from JUST a mystery novel and into an original literary masterpiece with twists and turns at the end of each chapter. I read the book in just shy of 48 hours. Best darn book I've ever read!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.David Loogan is a mysterious sort hiding a past. He recently moved to Ann Arbor and works on a novel in his spare time. As each revision is finished he takes a printed copy to a publishing house (Grey Streets) and leaves it anonymously through a transom window over a door. One day he is found out by the Grey Street's publisher (Tom), who offers him a job as an editor. Such is the fun way that things occur in this murder mystery.
David is enticed into an affair by Tom's wife, Laura. Not that long after David is asked by Tom to do him a "favor" and help him dispose of body. David doesn't really question Tom or make him call the police. Instead David agrees to help Tom and bury the body where it cannot be found. Shortly after people start being murdered and the police start suspecting that David is involved.
The investigation is led by a single mother (Elizabeth) that has an attraction to David even though she knows he is hiding something. David does indeed have a checkered past, which is obvious but the question is whether David is actually bad or the victim of some bad luck in his past.
As the bodies pile up, the main suspects seem to be those who write for Grey Streets. Elizabeth investigates them and seems to get advice from each one akin to solving a mystery in one of their books. The suspicion seems to shift from one person to the next and everything seems to be tied to a flashdrive and file box that the first victim had.
I really liked this book and would have given it a full five stars but as the plot unfolded, some things though fun, seemed a little over the top. This is a rather fast read and a good beach novel.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.I enjoyed this book. It was a bit different from the typical murder mystery. The locale of Michigan with the possible suspects being the mystery writers at a magazine was a nice change from the stately home or the grim dark streets. The lead character was one that seems to grow on you and makes you slowly change your opinion about him. Hopefully, Mr Dolan is writing a sequel with the same character. I'll be watching for it.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Didun
Posted September 4, 2009
Many people are murdered in this book - the plot is very confusing because of all of the people involved, and the twists and turns make your head spin. Many of the characters had ridiculous names also - names you would never come across in real life. The only character I really liked was Elizabeth Waishkey, the detective. Really quite annoying.
1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted February 14, 2013
Bad Things Happen is twisty in the very best kind of way, and will hold your attention on every page. The story is a about an enigmatic man named David Loogan who is a new resident of Ann Arbor, Michigan and his experiences that begin with his employ at a mystery magazine. What ensues from there involves many well-drawn and interesting characters and a lot of fun. Dolan is great at describing things without being flowery or too wordy, and I liked that a lot. Dolan gives you just enough information to pique your interest, not hit you over the head with it. Personally, I read a lot of mystery/thrillers and am on average pretty good at guessing what's going to come next in a story. Dolan on the other hand, kept me guessing...and I loved it. Definitely a recommended read.
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Posted September 23, 2012
Great novel of suspense with twists and turns throughout. Half way through I found myself looking for more books by the author.
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Posted December 24, 2011
Not the best book I've ever read, but really not all that great either. Probably would not recommend it.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.DFC12481
Posted October 21, 2011
This is a solid read. I kept wanting a little more action, yet I found myself continuously turning the page. Many characters are introduced, but the development of each character is solid. All in all, a great read.
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Posted April 1, 2011
I saw this book come to life during the first Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award and have followed Dolan's blossoming career ever since.
He's got this genre down, with a totally entertaining read sparkling with smart, quirky wit. Have at it.
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Off to a slow start but picks up momentum ... a really good read
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted November 16, 2010
I'm not a big mystery reader but this one blew my socks off. I loved it! So many twists and turns. Really well done.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.I have super mixed feelings on this novel. Bad Things Happen was good enough where it held my attention and I wanted to know what was going to happen next, but something was definitely missing. I kept saying while reading that it wanted to be a Hammet novel, but it wasn't. Things are half developed a lot of the time. This is a face paced book once you get about half way through.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.GinaK
Posted November 13, 2009
I read this book through, which is a plus, considering my hectic schedule. I preferred the tone at the beginning when the hero was a mystery man. However, the complicated plot wasn't completely satisfying, and the more human the hero became, the less I liked the book. I would have preferred the initial tone throughout.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Harry Dolan's novel "Bad Things Happen" is a suspenseful story that begins with the purchase of a shovel which makes us wonder if the purchaser is going to bury a body. But is David Loogan, a killer or the killer. As the story unfolds we learn more about Loogan; why the mysterious past and why was he buying a shovel for his boss, Tom Kristoll, the editor of a literary magazine. Soon people connected to the magazine are being found killed, but why? Detective Liz Waishkey is trying her hardest to solve the murders. This is a mystery story with various layers of mysteries that keep the reader guessing right to the end!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.David Loogan lives and hides in Ann Arbor in hope of moving past a violent history that he knows he will never forget. He begins to write a short story for Gray Streets literary crime-fiction journal. Though he never finishes the project, the magazine publisher Tom Kristoll likes what he has seen. He offers David a position as an editor, which he accepts. David, Tom, and his wife Laura become friends.
Tom obtains David's help in dumping a corpse though the former does not believe the latter's explanation. Soon afterward Tom falls to his death from his office window. AAPD Homicide Detective Elizabeth Waishkey suspects David killed Tom especially when evidence surfaces that he slept with Laura. As other people associated with Gray Streets die, single mom Elizabeth focuses even more intensely on David, who conducts his own inquiry to uncover the killer before he is on trial.
The fun in this terrific twisting serial killer investigative tale is the writers who are intelligent and witty until they become the star of someone else's plot. The story line is fast-paced and the amateur sleuth prime suspect and the obstinate cop chasing him makes for an intriguing duel. Mindful of the movies' Theater of Blood and Murder by Death, but less hammy, fans will enjoy Harry Dolan's fine thriller that as Vincent Price said (in Theatre of Blood) is "much ado about murder".
Harriet Klausner
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted December 25, 2009
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Posted July 31, 2010
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Posted February 25, 2011
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Posted March 21, 2011
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Overview
"Witty, sophisticated, suspenseful and endless fun...the best first novel I've read this year." -Washington Post
The man who calls himself David Loogan is hoping to escape a violent past by living a quiet, anonymous life in Ann Arbor, Michigan. But when he's hired as an editor at a mystery magazine, he is drawn into an affair with the sleek blond wife of the publisher, Tom Kristoll-a man who soon turns up dead.
Elizabeth Waishkey is the most ...