Murphy Murphy: And The Case of Serious Crisis

by Keith Hirshland

Overview

Murphy Murphy comes from a long line of male Murphys. All were named Murphy and all were cops. This Murphy heads the Department of Redundancy Department and his superior officer, Captain David "Dud" Hill has found him a case. The Captain's niece is in a rock 'n roll band called Serious Crisis, and it seems items belonging to members of the band have started to disappear.

Were these items stolen? Were they simply lost? As Murphy Murphy works the case, he must chase down the clues all the while dealing with grammatical anomalies that drive him crazy. As Murphy gets closer to the answers he seeks, one more "thing" goes missing; the Captain's niece. Suddenly, in an instant, the stakes in the case of Serious Crisis become a lot more dire.

Part Jasper Fforde, part Michael Connelly; Murphy Murphy and the Case of Serious Crisis combines humor, mystery, and grammar goofs as the detective pursues clues and suspects from coast to coast. It's an entertaining and educational read for all ages.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781949472127
Publisher:	Beacon Publishing Group
Publication date:	05/01/2020
Pages:	308
Product dimensions:	5.51(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.69(d)

Editorial Reviews

2020-05-19
A detective with an aversion to redundancies works a theft case that spins off into a missing person investigation in this mystery.

Detective Murphy Murphy is a one-man show at the Department of Redundancy Department. His superior, Capt. David Hill, assigns him a new case: Someone may be stealing personal items from members of the popular rock band Serious Crisis. Frontman Walter “DeMaio” Turrell is missing his $1,800 lighter while keyboardist/guitarist/songwriter Lyndsay Howlund, who is Hill’s niece, can’t find a set of golf balls. Murphy individually interviews and looks into the band members, their manager, and several roadies. It’s not always easy, as the detective seethes at people’s many redundancies (including “true fact” and a budget that’s “dwindling down”). But Murphy quickly has a suspect in Serious Crisis’ enigmatic “loyal” fan who doesn’t like answering questions. Then the case takes an unexpected turn when two people—Lyndsay and a roadie—disappear soon after they supposedly quarreled. It’s obvious that more than one individual has been lying to Murphy, whose investigation takes him to Orlando, Florida, and Los Angeles. Tracking down the missing pair may be the key to solving the entire mystery. Hirshland’s lighthearted story is often funny, as it incorporates abundant redundancies—not merely the ones Murphy notes. Most notable of these are the band’s name and its album titles, Ascend Up the Ladder and Basic Fundamentals. But there’s a genuine mystery as well. It begins as a relatively simple case and becomes increasingly dire while certain characters turn out to be more complex than they initially appear. Nevertheless, Murphy’s input is minimal, and the enigmas unravel predominantly on their own. The author rounds out the entertaining narrative with romance (Murphy is interested in female bartender Charlie Carlucci) and humorous backstories, like the origin of DeMaio’s nickname.

A pleasantly offbeat whodunit that introduces a quirky sleuth.

Kirkus Reviews