A fun murder mystery that kept me guessing. I think that Daggers and Steele had the entire cast of characters responsible for the murder. Nicely written with good, interesting characters. Well paced and a smooth read. ( )

After the sudden retirement of his partner, Detective Jake Daggers is teamed up with a rookie: not only is she a woman, but also a half-elf, and a proclaimed clairvoyant. Both need to overcome preconceptions in order to solve a puzzling murder.

While the initial premise sounded intriguing, and the urban fantasy setting certainly has potential, the execution leaves something to be desired. The murder of a con man at the centre of the novel is done well enough; it's just a shame that the character of Jake Daggers, who acts as the narrator, is such an idiot: unapologetically sexist, he views all women in terms of physical attributes and attractiveness. Luckily he's found his match in Shay Steele, his new partner, but even she appears to be warming to him by the end of the book.

I agree with one reviewer that the book isn't half as funny as it thinks it is; fewer wise-cracking jokes would certainly have been more. The ending is rushed, without a convincing explanation how the culprit carried out the murder, and the arrest happens at the hunch of Detective Daggers who finally sees light at the end of the tunnel, after accusing several suspects of the deed (ever heard of evidence?). Luckily the real culprit meekly admits defeat and submits to being handcuffed.

As yet I'm not sure if I want to continue the series; if so, getting the second volume won't be a priority. ( )

A fantasy police procedural, set in a large city with many non- and demi-human races. I didn't expect much from it given the fantasy murder mystery I read earlier in the year, but I was pleasantly surprised. Rather similar to Simon R Green's Hawke and Fisher series, but with rather more humour to leaven the grittiness (but not as much as Glen Cook's Garrett PI series). If Hill Street Blues was set in a fantasy metropolis, this would be it.

The story opens with homicide cop Daggers and his partner Griggs arresting a bunch of cannibal goblins. Daggers is your thirty-something cop, and Griggs is an old-timer. In the course of the arrest, Griggs is injured, and decides to retire. Daggers is faced with a new partner - Steele, who is apparently a psychic and female to boot (in the all male atmosphere of the homicide squad). He does get off on the wrong foot when he mistakes Steele for a secretary... In the course of an investigation, they get to know each other and learn respect for the other's talents.

A fun read, and one I can recommend.

Not as funny as it thinks it is, but an interesting take on an old premise anyway. Tough no-nonsense cop is paired up with a new partner, and suddenly he finds he has new lessons to learn. This time the partner is a delicate (looking) female half-elf.

The worldbuilding isn't exactly clear, there's some forms of technological development, plus a little bit of magic here and there, but no guns or cars or engines. It's unclear why not as they'd have been present in the equivalent modern era. Probably a kind of steampunk ish pseudo-western town, big enough to need an established police force, with dedicated detectives, and numerous "blue clothes" to do the details.

Daggers is the tough cop, and Steele his new partner. He makes all the sexist jokes and she generally manages to turn them aside by being a lot cleverer than he is. It would have worked better if he wasn't so sexist to start with, as that isn't really funny at any stage. They're investigating a body found in hotel corridor - who turns out to have been the fiancée of the daughter of a wealthy ironworks founder, and to have previously worked in a successful weaponsmiths (blades, the only known weapons are heavily restricted). A quick investigation into both these pasts, soon reveals many possible motives for the murder. Daggers and Steele explore them all before deciding on the right one.

I wasn't convinced by the world, which made understanding the crime a little harder - there seemed to be no need for the half-humans at all, they've added nothing to the plot and have no particular abilities to make any difference. Daggers and Steele deal almost exclusively with humans the entire time. In an ideal book this would a careful theme around tolerance counterpointed by Dagger's attitudes, that mellow over time, however I feel this might be a little too much to ask.

sort of fun, but I'm unlikely to continue the series. ( )

Red Hot Steele (Daggers & Steele #1) by Alex P. Berg is a fun, snarky, clever book that I gulped down in one read. What fun! Witty, good mystery, great fantasy, crazy characters, snappy dialogue, and it made me smile a lot! Just what I needed! I listened to the audio version and the narration was perfect. Great job. I originally gave it a 4 star but I just kept thinking of it so if it was effecting me that much I figured it was worth a 5 star, esp. when I wanted the next book right away. ( )