Review by Elli Karampela -- Veterans Day by J. J. Jorgens
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Elli Karampela
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- Latest Review: "Veterans Day" by J. J. Jorgens
Review by Elli Karampela -- Veterans Day by J. J. Jorgens
[Following is a volunteer review of "Veterans Day" by J. J. Jorgens.]
3 out of 4 stars
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Review for J. J. Jorgens's Veterans Day: A Mary Jane Morris Mystery
It was a particularly smart move for Jorgens to place Mary Jane Morris's obituary words at the foreword of the book; I am a life-long fan of detective fiction, and there is nothing like a good old mystery punch line to fire your imagination, trigger your curiosity, and leave you set up to explore the mystery about to unfold during the course of your reading. Taking cue from this, I admit that when Mary Jane Morris, the main detective character of Veterans Day: A Mary Jane Morris Mystery (2016), informs the reader that she has to stop writing her obituary "because the dog is growling and someone is at the door," I sensed immediately that this detective story is more promising than the title of the book admits.
Death, as it is, is the driving force that sets the action going. Mary Jane's quest for the meaning of her partner Davy's death fuels the plot throughout the book, and death is also what lies imminent as a possible fate for Mary Jane between the lines of the narrative. Although revenging a partner's death (and maybe dying for it) is not something entirely new to the detective fiction genre both in print and on TV, ? Dallas Barnes's See the Woman (1976) is a characteristic example of a death revenge book like this, as part of Barnes's LAPD novels ? Jorgens recounts a well-written story about a private investigator, Mary Jane, who is, interestingly, a law career dropout, and who goes after a carefully coordinated conspiracy of a powerful business gang trying to steal from the Veterans Administration. Smoothly integrated in an inconsistent Washington DC atmosphere swarming with homeless Vets, politicians, corrupted businessmen, spies, and resistant value-upholders trying to preserve a sense of history and dignity in the contradictory mish-mash world they live in, the narrative exposes the harsh reality behind a carefully concealed propagandistic play.
Such overwhelming criminal activity as presented in Jorgens's book is the reason why Washington DC is such a valuable setting for a 21-century detective fiction book; it artfully brings together history, politics, and business in an intriguing mystery that successfully presents Mary Jane as a modern female detective, familiarly placed within a long line of female, all-time-classic, detective figures like Nancy Drew and Miss Marple. Indeed, it is quite fitting that the author states from the very foreword of the book the ongoing fascination with detective characters ranging from Sherlock Holmes to Raymond Chandler; it is even more fitting that particular stress is laid on female detective characters that form a so-called "sisterhood," breaking the convention of the omniscient male detective brain of more classical stories like Sherlock Holmes. It is this kind of subversive spirit that penetrates the mentality of Veterans Day and makes us the witnesses of Mary Jane's badass attitude.
Truly, one of the best features of Veterans Day is the way the reader gets to know Mary Jane and understands her through her dedication and integrity, her stubbornness and weaknesses, her relationships and pitfalls. In a way, the whole book is a well-written thread of minute particulars that render every word of her obituary true; Mary Jane is indeed a good old-fashioned history and dog lover with a passion for race cars and a faithful boyfriend, dedicated to those in need, and fierce to the deceivers. What fascinates, though, is how these qualities melt in well-thought-of actions and rash decisions to bring out a scotch-loving and uniquely complex character ready to solve the mystery in the modern world.
And it is this same modern world that speaks to us most in Veterans Day. The old, dark Victorian setting of modernity that dominates earlier detective narratives shifts into a version of George Orwell's 1984; As another version of Airstrip One, Washington DC is a Big Brother world where surveillance penetrates every aspect of the individual's life. In such a setting, a Foucauldian power?resistance dynamic grows in a battle that is truly captivating. Citizen's World as a resisting counter-power to the business group that steals from the VA reflects a modern-day struggle for meaning and justice in a world of injustice and chaos. The effect is powerful, and the attention of the reader is guaranteed.
Sometimes descriptions of people or places can be overwhelming, and particulars of characters like Sally and Lorenzo can be left in the background without in-depth explanations, or details that would otherwise shed light to specific aspects of the lives of central characters. The book sometimes invites questions it does not eventually answer, or at least answer in full; however, the master narrative holds such a sweeping effect over the story that incomplete elements are willingly put under the rug. It is this same master narrative that brings a kind of open resolution and does justice to a rather vague title like the one Jorgens chose for the novel. Uncertainty is, after all, the stock-in-trade of Veterans Day. It characterizes various aspects of Mary Jane's adventures, and holds the key for a profuse mystery that makes you hold your breath.
For all these reasons I believe Jorgens's books are worth reading. Narratives like Veterans Day and Death in Costa Rica (2017) (another Mary Jane mystery waiting to be solved) satiate effectively the modern reader's appetite for a great, appealing detective story that makes the reader feel like a detective himself/herself. Some typological errors/omissions in the book should be checked and corrected, but, overall, the taste Veterans Day leaves is extremely pleasant. I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars, and I strongly recommend it for readers who cherish a nice and immersive modern-world detective book.
******
Veterans Day
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like Elli Karampela's review? Post a comment saying so!
3 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
Review for J. J. Jorgens's Veterans Day: A Mary Jane Morris Mystery
It was a particularly smart move for Jorgens to place Mary Jane Morris's obituary words at the foreword of the book; I am a life-long fan of detective fiction, and there is nothing like a good old mystery punch line to fire your imagination, trigger your curiosity, and leave you set up to explore the mystery about to unfold during the course of your reading. Taking cue from this, I admit that when Mary Jane Morris, the main detective character of Veterans Day: A Mary Jane Morris Mystery (2016), informs the reader that she has to stop writing her obituary "because the dog is growling and someone is at the door," I sensed immediately that this detective story is more promising than the title of the book admits.
Death, as it is, is the driving force that sets the action going. Mary Jane's quest for the meaning of her partner Davy's death fuels the plot throughout the book, and death is also what lies imminent as a possible fate for Mary Jane between the lines of the narrative. Although revenging a partner's death (and maybe dying for it) is not something entirely new to the detective fiction genre both in print and on TV, ? Dallas Barnes's See the Woman (1976) is a characteristic example of a death revenge book like this, as part of Barnes's LAPD novels ? Jorgens recounts a well-written story about a private investigator, Mary Jane, who is, interestingly, a law career dropout, and who goes after a carefully coordinated conspiracy of a powerful business gang trying to steal from the Veterans Administration. Smoothly integrated in an inconsistent Washington DC atmosphere swarming with homeless Vets, politicians, corrupted businessmen, spies, and resistant value-upholders trying to preserve a sense of history and dignity in the contradictory mish-mash world they live in, the narrative exposes the harsh reality behind a carefully concealed propagandistic play.
Such overwhelming criminal activity as presented in Jorgens's book is the reason why Washington DC is such a valuable setting for a 21-century detective fiction book; it artfully brings together history, politics, and business in an intriguing mystery that successfully presents Mary Jane as a modern female detective, familiarly placed within a long line of female, all-time-classic, detective figures like Nancy Drew and Miss Marple. Indeed, it is quite fitting that the author states from the very foreword of the book the ongoing fascination with detective characters ranging from Sherlock Holmes to Raymond Chandler; it is even more fitting that particular stress is laid on female detective characters that form a so-called "sisterhood," breaking the convention of the omniscient male detective brain of more classical stories like Sherlock Holmes. It is this kind of subversive spirit that penetrates the mentality of Veterans Day and makes us the witnesses of Mary Jane's badass attitude.
Truly, one of the best features of Veterans Day is the way the reader gets to know Mary Jane and understands her through her dedication and integrity, her stubbornness and weaknesses, her relationships and pitfalls. In a way, the whole book is a well-written thread of minute particulars that render every word of her obituary true; Mary Jane is indeed a good old-fashioned history and dog lover with a passion for race cars and a faithful boyfriend, dedicated to those in need, and fierce to the deceivers. What fascinates, though, is how these qualities melt in well-thought-of actions and rash decisions to bring out a scotch-loving and uniquely complex character ready to solve the mystery in the modern world.
And it is this same modern world that speaks to us most in Veterans Day. The old, dark Victorian setting of modernity that dominates earlier detective narratives shifts into a version of George Orwell's 1984; As another version of Airstrip One, Washington DC is a Big Brother world where surveillance penetrates every aspect of the individual's life. In such a setting, a Foucauldian power?resistance dynamic grows in a battle that is truly captivating. Citizen's World as a resisting counter-power to the business group that steals from the VA reflects a modern-day struggle for meaning and justice in a world of injustice and chaos. The effect is powerful, and the attention of the reader is guaranteed.
Sometimes descriptions of people or places can be overwhelming, and particulars of characters like Sally and Lorenzo can be left in the background without in-depth explanations, or details that would otherwise shed light to specific aspects of the lives of central characters. The book sometimes invites questions it does not eventually answer, or at least answer in full; however, the master narrative holds such a sweeping effect over the story that incomplete elements are willingly put under the rug. It is this same master narrative that brings a kind of open resolution and does justice to a rather vague title like the one Jorgens chose for the novel. Uncertainty is, after all, the stock-in-trade of Veterans Day. It characterizes various aspects of Mary Jane's adventures, and holds the key for a profuse mystery that makes you hold your breath.
For all these reasons I believe Jorgens's books are worth reading. Narratives like Veterans Day and Death in Costa Rica (2017) (another Mary Jane mystery waiting to be solved) satiate effectively the modern reader's appetite for a great, appealing detective story that makes the reader feel like a detective himself/herself. Some typological errors/omissions in the book should be checked and corrected, but, overall, the taste Veterans Day leaves is extremely pleasant. I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars, and I strongly recommend it for readers who cherish a nice and immersive modern-world detective book.
******
Veterans Day
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like Elli Karampela's review? Post a comment saying so!
Latest Review: "Veterans Day" by J. J. Jorgens
