Welcome to the land of danger and intrigue, where individuals are legion and non-conformity is the norm. Join me as I explore the many facets of humanity and meet the scum of the earth and its angels incarnate.

That said, on to the review!

Diamond Head is the winner of the 7th annual St. Martin's Press/PWA Best First Private Eye Novel Contest. It's not a mystery mystery the way Murder, She Wrote is--i.e., it's not a "whodunit" novel--but the plot was compelling enough. I admit to being biased in its favor because it's set in Hawai'i, but the novel is still good.

Retired Navy SEAL-turned private investigator John Caine makes a living by doing "favors" for the select few he calls "friends," putting his military training and background to good use. Things go drastically wrong when a friend calls on him to help his former CO, now an admiral with political aspirations. His job is simple enough: find out who raped and killed the admiral's daughter, and why. Unfortunately, his investigation uncovers a very lucrative hidden film industry, leading him into a realm of sex, bondage, power, money, and murder. Add to that the most powerful man in Chinatown looking for vengeance and an Australian national unwilling to dissolve a lucrative business, and you have a situation ready to explode.

Caine isn't your ordinary investigator, so don't expect an episode of Magnum, P.I. or Hawaii 5-0. Knief hits you with more than just simple investigation. Be ready for man-eating sharks, an increasing body count, videotapes that tell all, a sex scene that's almost too graphic for words, and a slow-speed (that's right, slow-speed) boat chase into a hurricane. He also weaves in well-known O'ahu landmarks, like Kelly's^*, Fort DeRussey, and ABC stores. He incorporates some of Hawai'i's recent history, such as Hurricane Iniki and the damage it caused.

Knief has another book coming out in hardcover from St. Martin's Press. It's title, Sand Dollars, suggests a story involving the beach. With any luck it will be another novel set in Hawai'i. I'll be on the watch for it--in paperback, of course--so check back here for a looksee now and then.

^*--Kelly's Coffee Shop closed on March 31, 1998 after over fifty years of service.

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