I received a free copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. Jack Bertolino, a retired narcotics detective is unexpectedly contacted by one of his former Criminal Informants. She was supposed to disappear after they put the drug kingpin away, so why is she here? After a steamy night of passion, Mia confesses that her life is in danger. He’s been set up for her murder, and now he’s on a race against time to find out who the real killer is.

This was an action packed suspense thriller. It kept me riveted from the very beginning. The main character is so realistic, and all of the descriptions so vivid, I felt like I was there. The synopsis had said it was similar to a James Patterson novel and I was skeptical. Truth be told, John Lansing is an amazing author! If you do like James Patterson, you’ll love this book.
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A special thank you to Gallery Books, Karen Hunter Publishing, and NetGalley for a complimentary reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

Wow, loving protagonist, Jack Bertolino! Was dying to read The Devil's Necktie, after having just finished an ARC of #2 in the series Blond Cargo (10/20/14). Was intrigued with the sexy and complex Jack, and how he found himself in LA on the west coast. Highly recommend both!

John Lansing delivers a riveting and intense crime thriller debut novel, The Devil’s Necktie (#1 Jack Bertolino) a hero and ex-NYPD, now in LA in the middle of a world of danger, violence, gangs, drug cartels, and murder while mixed with Hollywood glitz and glam!

Jack Bertolino has left his hometown of New York City, and his position of NYPD narcotics chief after ongoing back pain side, taking early retirement, and relocates to Los Angeles, CA to enjoy life at a slower pace. (for like 5 seconds)?

Unfortunately, at the opening of the novel, his leisurely evening on the balcony of his loft in Marina del Rey, grilling a steak and nursing a glass of wine, is interrupted when he receives a call from Mia, one of the best Columbian CIs in the business, for the DEA, the NYPD, and the federal government. She and Jack had teamed up with groundbreaking work together. With the help of Mia and DEA agent Kenny Ortega, Jack and the team of NYPD narco-rangers he headed up—put away a heavy hitter in the cocaine trade.

Manuel Alvarez was the head of a Columbian drug cell that had been importing a thousand keys of coke into Florida on a weekly basis, and the poison was dripping into New York City. Jack and his group had put away a major cartel scumbag, and Mia had gotten rich, at a great personal risk.

The only problem, informants had a short shelf life. Once a major domo got busted, the cartels worked very hard to discover where the sickness had come from. If your name ended up on the short list, you turned up dead. Jack had made a promise to Mia that if things ever got too hot to handle, he would do whatever he could to help her out of the jam. She was calling in the note (chit, or favor).

She is in LA, and he drops everything and he goes to visit her. She tells him the entire story and they wind up sleeping together for hours of passion. When she falls asleep, he leaves. Who was she running from? What kind of game was she into to? Had someone discovered her secret? Had Alvarez tumbled to the fact that Mia was the reason he was eating jail chow? If this was serious he would reach out to Kenny in Miami. The feds might be able to put her back in the system and arrange for witness protection. Mia had become an informant for revenge for what this horrible family did to her, for loving the wrong man, the wrong people.

However, all this went up in smoke, when less than 30 minutes after he left her bed, she was brutally murdered. He rushes back when he sees the police cars headed that way; too little, too late. The drug kingpins called it a Columbian Necktie—some, the Devil’s Necktie. (gross). They had butchered her to death. This scene tormented Jack, and her eyes, would continue to torment him, until he took down the animal who had killed her. Could he have done anything to prevent Mia’s death? It weighed heavily on him.

The Los Angeles police initially suspect Jack but quickly clear him, and then brush him off when he offers to help. This of course does not stop Jack, as he investigates the murder on his own, using his instincts and invaluable connections from his cartel-busting days to unearth new evidence that makes the LAPD crawl back to him. Old enemies return to haunt Jack, placing not only himself in danger, but the people he cares about too. Soon Jack realizes that motives for Mia’s murder go much further than just a local gang hit, the people behind the brutal slaying have connections all the way back to the drug cartels of both Mexico and Columbia.

From the 18th Street angels, cops, sex, drugs, money laundering, murder, violence, danger, cops, mafia, Mexican cartels, and some cool LA hot spots, fancy cars, yachts, upscale neighborhoods to seedy bad ones, and a hot romance, for an explosive and mega bucks’ ending of killing two birds with one stone with delicious revenge.

What makes Lansing’s novel so enjoyable is his unique character development, Jack’s personal life with his son, Chris, his east coast ex-wife, new relationships; his strengths, weaknesses, and humor—mixed with the fast paced action – a dynamic winning combination! Hope we see a movie upcoming!

The Devil’s Necktie, lives up, and I was not disappointed! Highly recommend reading both books; high quality, with superb and sharp writing. They can be a standalone; however, you cannot stop with one. (I tend to read new releases, get hooked, and then devour their previous work).

Jack Bertolino is Jack’s Lansing’s dangerous, and sexy LA hero; similar to Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch and Mickey Haller; Karin Slaughter’s southern and troubled GA Bureau of Investigation agent, Will Trent; J. Carson Black’s Cyril Landry, former navy seal; and Paul Cleave’s Christchurch PD, Theodore Tate.

Lovable tough heroes, fighting the bad guys; ones we support, root for, and keep reading, and reading, anxiously awaiting for the next, while hoping the series never ends. The Blond Cargo carries on the explosive action and cannot wait for the next one!

http://www.judithdcollinsconsulting.com/#!The-Devils-Necktie/cmoa/4CF5BF03-588B-...
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The term "The Devil's Necktie" is a pretty gruesome way in which a person is murdered and is used a lot in gang killings. An old acquaintance and her murder makes Jack Bertolino a suspect. While trying to prove his innocence, Jack finds himself getting in deeper and deeper into the drug world, sometimes with devastating results. He is beat up, shot at numerous times and his son is nearly killed which makes Jack more determined to find the people behind Mia's murder. The good guys are so easy to like and the bad guys so easy to hate in this character driven novel. A well developed plot makes for an exceptional read. I liked the excitement to the story, never a dull moment..definitely a page turner of a crime novel. I can certainly see this become a series. ( )

The Devil's Necktie is a riveting tale that takes the reader into the seedy underworld of crime, drug cartels and murder. Author John Lansing weaves a fast-paced crime thriller set in Los Angeles and written in the third person narrative, that follows the dangerous quest of retired NYPD inspector Jack Bertolino as he investigates the heinous murder of Mia, his former confidential informant, and the woman whom he had recently shared a passionate night together. Jack's investigation leads him into the seedy underworld of drug cartels, where he finds himself caught up in a dangerous and deadly world that he thought he had left behind.

This riveting realistic story is full of intrigue, action, drama, suspense, murder and dark humor that draws the reader in and keeps them captivated and turning the pages. As the reader follows Jack into the shady world of cops and crime, the multitude of plot twists and turns will keep them guessing what will happen next. Jack takes the reader on a wild ride when his dangerous adventure takes him into the upscale areas and seedy gang infested neighborhoods of LA. It is a seedy and gritty world of drugs, gangs, money laundering, and murder ... where he clashes with cops, drug gangs, ruthless drug cartels, and a variety of old and new enemies... all in the pursuit of Mia's killer.

With a multidimensional cast of characters who leap off the pages; gritty dialogue and vivid interactions; richly detailed description of the neighborhoods and local landmarks in Los Angeles; and a no-holds-barred storyline that keeps the reader sitting on the edge of their seats holding their breath as the chilling trail of crime and murders leads up to an explosive climax; The Devil's Necktie is one hell of a thrilling story that you won't be able to put down and leaves you wanting more!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from the author in exchange for my honest review and participation in a virtual book tour event hosted by Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tours.

http://jerseygirlbookreviews.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-devils-necktie-by-john-lan... ( )

The Devil’s Necktie by John Lansing is a big winner with me. I want to read more books by him. This was not a hard book to get into, the dialogue is believable, the characters well developed and the storyline is great. I did not want to put it down. I have no negatives about this book.

Jack Bertolino is a newly retired detective from NYPD who transplanted himself to Marina Del Rey. He was finally escaping winter and outside barbequing on his grill. He was happy. That is how his story starts.

He gets a call from Mia, an old trusted Confidential Informant from the past. He has always been impressed with her intelligent and beauty. He meets with her and he leaves after a night in bed with her. She had been so scared for her and he wanted to find to protect her. But it was too late; she dies a very violent death. From there, Jack is pulled back into a mess involving the CI’s murder, drugs, gangs and violence and some very cold blooded murderers.

There are scenes that I will never forget and also I feel that I learned a lot more about gangs than I did before. The backgrounds of the main characters enrich and add a great depth to this book. I really felt like I was right there so many times in this book. I don’t usually like a lot of action in a book or movie but the action scenes were all masterfully done.

I recommend this book to everyone who love thrillers and even more to those who have live in L.A.

I received an ARC of this book from Partner’s In Crime Tours but that in no way influenced my review. My thoughts are my own. ( )