Mexican Hat: A Kevin Kerney Novel

By Michael McGarrity

Book Overview

With his dazzling debut, Tularosa, Michael McGarrity was hailed "a born storyteller" (Denver Post)--and introduced readers to a memorable new hero, ex-Santa Fe chief of detectives Kevin Kerney. Now, featuring his vivid feel for the southwest, McGarrity's second gripping novel hurls Kerney onto the toughest case of his life.

Taking a job as a seasonal forest ranger in New Mexico's Gila Wilderness, Kevin Kerney is looking forward to a quiet summer high in the mountains. But the murder of a Mexican tourist, and the discovery of a disoriented old man in the wild, thrust Kerney into an investigation that will carry him back in time to a sixty-year-old feud between two land-rich brothers, Edgar and Eugene Cox.

Enlisting young state game and fish officer Jim Stiles to help solve the crimes, Kerney slowly uncovers evidence connecting the ruthless Cox feud with another suspicious death--and the radical actions of New Mexico's present-day county militia. But new assistant district attorney Karen Cox--Edgar's alluring daughter--is torn between hiding her father's long-buried secret and helping Kerney find the truth. Now someone wants Kerney dead--and the deeper he investigates, the more he may be digging his own grave...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0393333981
• ISBN13: 9780393333985
• Release Date: January 2009
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.62 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.5" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Kinda boring

Little too much on the anti-white side for me. Main character too predictably arrogant. Earlier books leading up to this were better.

Mexican Hat pleases

In Mexican Hat, Michael McGarrity proves Tularosa was no fluke. I thought Tularosa was great but Mexican Hat is even better. I'm beginning to think of McGarrity as a modern day Louis L'Amour and that, from me, is high praise. Mexican Hat makes police procedures spell-binding, whereas with most other writers I skim over the "procedural/boring" part of the books. And as with Tularosa, McGarrity's settings are so real you can smell the sagebrush. Still, it's Kevin Kearney and the other characters who are the kind of people you want for your own friends, who will keep me coming back for more. Ray White How I Got Published: Famous Authors Tell You in Their Own Words

MEXICAN HAT DANCE

Kevin Kerney is back in McGarrity's second novel in this well-written series. Kerney is now a seasonal forest ranger in New Mexico's Gila Wilderness. A Mexican tourist is murdered, and his senile grandfather wandering around the area; seems, too, like there are some poachers in the area. Add to this a sixty-year old family feud, a lovely ADA, and a great partner (Jim Stiles), and Kerney is off and running in trying to find murderers, poacheers, and the harvesting of rare animals for illegal sales. As in TULAROSA, the plot is thick and juicy, and Kerney once again the penultimate hero. A great read in this wonderfully engaging series.

COWBOY COPS,POACHERS,CRAZED MILITIAMEN

Kevin Kerney is a former chief of detectives of in a major southwest city. He was seriously wounded and retired with a bad knee. He has taken a summer job as a park ranger in New Mexico's Gila Wilderness. A rancher finds a poached black bear,a Mexican man is killed, and an elderly man found in a cave. Kevin Kerney is pushed aside by his superiors in the investigations. He keeps investigating with the help of other intelligent rangers and a divorced district attorney,Karen Cox. More people are wounded,a couger is killed, and Kevin's home is blown up. Karen Cox's family is part of the mystery, many family secrets abound. The pace is fast,the action believable and the characters engrossing. The scenic descriptions are vivid. The plot plausible. I enjoyed the story and now must read the other books by Mr. Mc Garrity.

Entertaining page turner.

I found myself looking forward to bedtime so I could continue reading about the (mis)adventures of Kevin Kerney. Plenty of action and a hint of romance made it a real page turner. I am eagerly anticipating reading McGarrity's first novel "Tularosa".

2 Thumbs Up!---if it's a movie

I don't want to say more about this book, all I want to say is that when I turned over to the last page and finished this book, I was kinda smiling and happy for Kerney, although his situation in most part of this book was miserable and tough. Mr. McGarrity, please, more and quicker!!! Just hope your Muse won't be drained up or withered away too soon. God bless.