In Americano by M.L. Hamilton, things are going well in Sequoia until Tate, the hardware store owner and consulting deputy, gets summoned to the Acorn Casino by Lorenzo Whitefeather. “Enzo,” as Tate insists on calling him, takes Tate, with Zion insisting on tagging along, to the kitchen, where a man sits on a chair in the walk-in freezer, frozen solid. Zion soon realizes that the dead man is Dr. Germ, who, according to the gravestone composed by the hippy barista Deimos, “was a healer, and was a drug dealer.”
The case proves to be a particularly complex case, as every possible suspect seems to get ruled out quickly, and Dr. Germ kept his numerous files in code. Zion’s hippy parents, who named their daughter after their honeymoon location, provide comic relief as they arrive in town with their new motorcycle gang, the Rusty Buckets. The relationship between Tate and Zion continues to progress, but it felt that they have too many “romantic interludes.” It keeps the sex scenes behind closed doors, but we have the doors close on us all the time. That got tiresome after a while.
This book has a strong anti-drug message to it, though sometimes it feels like it gets too preachy about its message. The mayor is planning a new music festival and teaming up with an anti-drug advocate to plaster the festival with messages of, “Say nope to dope.” The advocate becomes too aggressive, and then the message about Dr. Germ and his life becomes too blatant and pushy.
The audio edition is performed by Kelley Hazen, who continues doing a generally good job of bringing the book to life. I like the voice she uses for Deimos, the hippy barista with a heart of gold. I did think her voicing of Evie, a young woman who comes to work for Zion, sounds like she is mumbling, making the lines a little confusing to understand at times. However, overall I continued to enjoy the narration.
I enjoyed Americano, but this book was not as enjoyable as the previous four. I highly enjoyed seeing Tate and Zion track down the killer, a creative path. I just would have liked to see less physical passion and a softer message against drugs. I give this book four stars.
Disclaimer: I received this book for free for review purposes, but that had no influence on the content of my review.
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