"A Cool Breeze on the Underground" by Don Winslow

Every reader has their favorite authors, and undoubtedly Don Winslow is one of mine.  The first book of his I read, “The Winter of Frankie Machine”, blew me away.  How anything could ever top it, I couldn’t see.  Then came “The Dawn Patrol” – another remarkable achievement – followed by “The Power of the Dog”, which was so stunning I literally fell into the setting, while the characters led me through the story.

Now my eyes find “A Cool Breeze on the Underground”, an entirely different format from any of Winslow’s other three books – and one absent the harsher edge for which the others are known.

This one is a good old-fashioned mystery - something akin to the classic Phillip Marlow/Sam Spade films of Humphrey Bogart.  Winslow, however, takes his guy, Neal Carey, a step further by showing his education into the P.I. life (hilarious interchanges between Neal and his teacher, Phil Graham) and giving the subject of the chase, Allie Chase, reason for her flight.  She’s not just another empty-headed teen.  It forces one to consider a new pair of eyes on those who have seemingly abandoned the way