South Phoenix Rules

By Jon Talton

A handsome young New York professor comes to Phoenix to research his new book. But when he’s brutally murdered, police connect him to one of the world’s most deadly drug cartels. This shouldn’t be a case for historian-turned-deputy David Mapstone – except the victim has been dating David’s sister-in-law Robin and now she’s a target, too. David’s wife Lindsey is in Washington with an elite anti-cyber terror unit and she makes one demand of him: protect Robin. This won’t be an easy job with the city police suspicious of Robin and trying to pressure her. With the sheriff’s office in turmoil, David is even more of an outsider. And the gangsters are able to outgun and outspend law enforcement. It doesn’t help that David and Lindsey’s long-distance marriage is under strain. But the danger is real and growing. To save Robin, David must leave his stack of historic crimes and plunge into the savage today world of smuggling – people, drugs, and guns – in Phoenix. Arizona’s “History Shamus” returns in “South Phoenix Rules.” It’s the most gripping and personal David Mapstone Mystery yet.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
• Release date: May 27, 2010
• ISBN: 9781615952618

Jon Talton

Jon Talton is a fourth-generation Arizonan who grew up in the same neighbourhood that Mapstone calls home. He is the author of nine novels, including the Mapstone mysteries, The Pain Nurse and Deadline Man.

Reviews for South Phoenix Rules

[ecw0647 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Got this free as an advanced reader copy.

It’s hot. Gasoline is running in short supply. Tempers are ready to flare. Gangs are at each others’ throats. Foreclosures are rampant. And deputy David Mapstone Maricopa County sheriff’s department historian has been called back into uniform duty due to cutbacks. Mapstone combines his skills as a historian with law enforcement knowledge to solve cold cases.

In this page-turner, Mapstone’s sister-in-law (David’s wife, Lindsay Faith has moved to Washington to take a job with Homeland Security) has been dating a sociologist from NYU, Jax. She’s been living in Mapstone’s garage apartment and one evening receives a package from him. Inside is Jax’s severed head. Mapstone, who was in the process of resigning from the department to return to teaching following his mentor non-re-election for sheriff, soon learns that NYU has no record of Jax and that he may have really been a notorious assassin.

David’s boss, Peralta, warns him he needs to protect Robin from the gangsters who sent the head. Then David notices that Robin is wearing a necklace that has blood on the back. In a confrontation, she admits that the chain, which has two dog-tags attached, bith dating from WW II and belonging to a Nisei soldier, was in the box with the head. Did she scream before or after she took the chain from the box, David wonders. Then it turns out Jax was ATF. David is soon in the midst of a jungle of mistaken identity, murder and mayhem.

Phoenix does not come off well. “[It] was increasingly a freak show. Ted Williams’ head was frozen in Scottsdale, waiting for the day the slugger could be regenerated. Unfortunately some employees decided to use his noggin for batting practice. The richest man in town didn’t support the arts, but he spent money to try cloning his dead dog. A disgraced former governor remade himself as a pastry chef. It was a city where a man left his wife by killing her and his children and then blowing up his suburban house, where a woman cut up her lover and left him in a dumpster.”

Excellent story with a nice blend of history and investigation and a great read.

[jamespurcell · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Darker and better, an excellent addition the the series.

[cathyskye · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

First Line: The August heat in Phoenix has a color.Changes are staring David Mapstone in the face. His boss was defeated in the recent election, and Mapstone knows he's on the way out, too. He has no clear idea of what he's going to do next. All he does know is that his wife is still on assignment in Washington, DC, and he's not exactly happy that her sister, Robin, is living in the apartment above his garage.When the history professor Robin is dating is killed and connected to a deadly drug cartel, Mapstone knows that Robin's life is in danger. In order to protect his sister-in-law, he has to turn from history and cold cases to the very real and very current world of smuggling (people, drugs, guns) in Phoenix.Once again Talton has crafted a gripping mystery with a main character I've grown to care about-- and taught me more Phoenix history along the way. Mapstone is a Phoenix native, raised by his grandparents in an older home in an older neighborhood. He's seen the way Phoenix has changed, and he doesn't like it. (When I think of the changes this city has undergone since I moved here in 1976, I understand at least part of Mapstone's pain.) Talton uses this knowledge of the past as well as the here-and-now to excellent effect-- even down to the new sheriff of Maricopa County having won the election with a STOP ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS! campaign.The tension keeps simmering with gang members watching the house, shootouts in parking lots, illegal gun sales, and Mapstone's very uneasy relationship with his wife. Perhaps it was because I knew which Pete's Fish and Chips Mapstone was meeting a bad guy at, or because a suspect lived a few blocks from me, but I almost felt as though I needed eyes in the back of my head as I read this book. I love reading a book that keeps me that involved in the action.If you live in Phoenix and love crime fiction, you should definitely read this series. Even if you live elsewhere, you should enjoy these well-written books featuring the "History Shamus". How well does this book stand on its own? It stands on its own rather well. There are comments made about events in previous books, but they shouldn't be confusing.... Hopefully they'll make you want to read the rest. The characters in this series grow and change, and I've enjoyed experiencing the changes along with them. Perhaps you will, too.