Audio Book Review: The Case of the Claw

The Case of the Claw

By:  Keith R.A. DeCandido

Publish Date:  July 2, 2011, Audiobook Release June 7, 2013

Format:  Audiobook - 6 hrs 49 mins
Narrated By:  Tee Morris

Genre:  Urban Fantasy, Mystery

Series:  1st in S.C.P.D. (Super City Police Department) series

First Impression:  Police working to do their job in a city constantly "saved" by superheroes.

Synopsis:
The great metropolis of Super City is the home of dozens of costumed heroes: Spectacular Man, the Terrific Trio, the Bruiser, the Superior Six, and more.

This isn't their story...

When the heroes are done punching out the villains, it's left to the stalwart men and women of the Super City Police Department to restrain them, arrest them, and hope that this time there's enough evidence to actually convict them.

SUPER CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT
THE CASE OF THE CLAW

The mutated spree killer known as the Claw has returned, leaving bloody victims all over Super City. While Homicide detectives try to find out who the Claw really is, uniformed officers must deal with the Bolt's escape from the drunk tank, and the bumblings of aspiring hero Knight Dude. Meanwhile, the Superior Six claim they'll cooperate with the police and stop the Claw—but they're busy fighting the Brute Squad and stonewalling the cops. The SCPD must find out the Claw's deadly secret, before he claims another victim!

First Sentence:
A yellow streak flew overhead, stirring up the litter on 20th Street.

Purchase At:
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Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:
*This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBoom dot com, at my request.

With The Claw back in town and killing, other bad guys active has increased as cops are thought to be out in waves looking for The Claw. The police have been working overtime and spread thin chasing villains. The cops are at their limits with the bad guys they are chasing, or having to let go as one of the 'costumes' brought in without evidence or witness.

Tee Morris voices the characters in this book. When I saw that, I had to have it. Along with it being a superhero story with detectives. Yes! :D

Tee Morris lives up to what I looked forward to. He does different accents for the characters to fit their feel in words. Even for the female characters he does different tones and softness to his voice to differentiate the large cast of characters found in this world. Tee has a bold voice that is clear in speaking, making every word easy to understand. The editing sounded seamless as I went through the story with a clean background.

We dive in driving through town with two police on duty, learning that superheroes speeding around town and a quick intro as to what color each one wears. This sets the stage of who is present in the town. Then, Bruiser stops the cops, wanting them to see what he found. A dead mangled body with a post-it note on his forehead. The Claw is back.

We see the case through the detectives eyes as they find the victims and the details of the cases. They struggle to solve the case, but the superheroes that pledged to help, don't seem to be doing that. This murderer needs to be found before he strikes again and they do what they can to get answers. We also see through a journalist and a few other powerful positions in the city that's involved with the case or the superheroes present in the city.

We live through the police lives as they live with the 'costumes' who are 'helping' with dangers and bad guys in the Super City. The pairs are partnered up great to compliment or spark the characters thoughts and personalities. It's a rough way to make a living here in Super City though, the powerful 'costumes' makes it seem the police don't do anything, but the do. As much as the superpowers help, they also hurt. They bring in perps that have to be released back on the streets without the proper witness or information. Also, they don't share information about searching for The Claw, or the want-a-be's get in the way, causing the guilty to get away. The superpowers seem to be outside the law in their way of handling things, or so they think. There are times that this is not a good thing, and we see it.

I've found this story is one about the people we see. There is more about them and other cases the police are on rather than The Claw. Though, with the information that's held from the police by the superpowers, I can see why. I was expecting a bit more about the mystery to find The Claw than what I got in the beginning. In the end, we got the case and the information the detectives needed.

A character driven story with lives at stake. I'd be curious to try more books by Keith. He has a way of bringing all the characters to life as they are all different. He also makes a point in his stories that things are not all good or bad, there is a balance to the system, you just have to find it. Superheroes are good, yet there is something about the way they do things that can be not as helpful as people think.



*If you found my thoughts helpful, please click Yes at Amazon and/or Audible. Thank you!