Bahama Burnout

Don Bruns
Oceanview Publishing (2009)
ISBN 9781933515205
Reviewed by Tyler R. Tichelaar for Reader Views (3/09)

“Bahama Burnout” is the story of Highland, a recording studio that has fallen on hard times. The studio had once created some of music’s greatest hits, but a mysterious fire that included a death, and some albums that failed to sell well have caused the studio to fall on hard times. After Highland is rebuilt, Mick Sever, entertainment reporter, goes to cover the story of the grand opening.

The group Johnny Run has returned to give Highland Studios another try in making their next album, despite the last one not selling. But Johnny Run and Highland together is a recipe for disaster. Is there a ghost haunting the studio with the intention of revenging the past or simply causing more trouble?

And what about Elvis’ Cadillac next door? Etta May, a possibly crazy woman, has been trying to sell her Cadillac to every recording artist who comes to Highland Studios. She claims it belonged to Elvis. She even claims Elvis gave it to her. She is frustrated that the stars like to sit in the Cadillac because it belonged to Elvis, but none will buy it from her. She also blames the clients of Highland Studios for giving drugs to her mentally challenged son. Does she hate Highland Studios so much she would try to burn the place down?

Mick Sever soon finds himself with a mystery to solve when murder happens again. Even the gorgeous female bartender he gets involved with cannot prevent him from getting mixed up in murder and violence. But can he solve the mystery?

While I thought the mystery plot satisfying, with all the right twists and surprises, I found myself a bit confused regarding who was who among the characters in the first half of the book. Bruns did not give a lot of detail to the characters. Mick Sever was supposed to be the detective, but his role in the book didn’t seem all that significant. If anything, I would have liked more character development and for the book to center around Sever more, but, since Mick Sever has appeared in previous books, Bruns may have assumed his readers knew more about his detective already. I did find the look at the music world interesting—the music world is apparently the backdrop for all the mystery novels that feature Mick Sever.

“Bahama Burnout” by Don Bruns was a fun read. It would be a good book to read on a rainy afternoon or at the beach. I found Etta May especially amusing, and I don’t think I’ll ever forget the role of Elvis’s Cadillac in the novel.

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