Get Busy Dying

Another solid mystery from Ben Rehder. Fraud investigator
Roy Ballard and his partner Mia Madison our out to video Boz Gentry. Supposedly, Boz died in a car crash but the police aren’t sure if the body is Boz, and the insurance company is won’t hand out 3 million dollars until they are.. All Roy needs to do is video Boz and his job is done.

The concept of a crime fighting videographer is a change from the hard-boiled PI, or the FBI special agent. Technology is the center of the investigation and boy ha it made me look at my Face Book settings.

Many twists and turns with lots of personal threads running through the story. Relaxing!

Hey now - Johnny Peppers finally learned how to say videographer! Woo hoo.

Rehder does love to show off his knowledge of Facebook and its wonky and sometimes impenetrable security settings. Wish he'd give that a rest already.

This is the first book I've read by Ben Rehder, but I was impressed by the ratings. I love humorous mysteries, but I didn't find this story particularly exciting or funny. The prose is sound and the dialog realistic but it was pretty clear from the outset where things were headed. For those who like mysteries with a touch of romance, the personal connection between Roy and Mia is minimal in this book but promises to blossom in future. The denouement was slapstick.

Johnny Peppers does a credible job of narration, with a kind of Texas drawl.

I don't know why this series is rated so highly; I won't be rushing out to read more.

Found as 2015 Shamus Award Finalist. Second in series. BOOK not in Merlin. Sample available.