Review of Robin Yocum’s A Welcome Murder

From the Publisher:

After his unspectacular professional baseball career ends with a knee injury in Toledo, Ohio, Johnny Earl gets busted for selling cocaine. After serving seven years in prison, all he wants to do is return to his hometown of Steubenville, retrieve the drug money he stashed before he went to jail, and start a new life where no one has ever heard of Johnny Earl.

However, before he can leave town with his money, Johnny is picked up for questioning in the murder of Rayce Daubner, the FBI informant who had set him up on drug charges in the first place. Then his former prison cellmate shows up–a white supremacist who wants the drug money to help fund an Aryan nation in the wilds of Idaho.

Five memorable characters, each with a separate agenda, come together in this layered tale of murder, deceit, and political intrigue.

My review

Robin Yocum has created a cunningly plotted whodunnit in A Welcome Murder with five unforgettable, quirky characters. Each of those characters has a distinctive voice, which fits with their personality and point of view.

Alternating points of view throughout the book give the reader insight into each character, their desires, needs, and fears. This is a sordid tale of small town rivalries and competition. As the story progresses, Yocum peels back the layers on each character to expose them and their possible reason to commit murder.

The writing is excellent, nothing less than one would expect from one of last year’s Edgar nominees. Rather than resting on his laurels, Yocum has again aimed high with a novel about the lowest of the low. The surprise ending will leave readers looking forward to Yocum’s next novel.