B.C. author’s crime novel hits some of the right notes

The Chairman’s Toys

Graham Reed Poisoned Pen Press

Imagine you are Jake Constable, an unsuccessful dope smuggler who is trying to go straight at a new job looking after empty mansions.

Then imagine that an unauthorized party you are holding in one of these palaces goes seriously sideways when a dead body is found in the bathroom.

Further imagine that you have unwisely accepted a pair of mystery pills from a stranger at the party, and then learned as the drugs kicked in that a dangerously violent ex-accomplice, The Norwegian, has made an appearance as well.

What more could possibly go wrong?

Bowen Island crime writer Graham Reed spends the rest of his charming but flawed picaresque, The Chairman’s Toys, answering that rhetorical question.

The picaresque (which by definition features charming rogues and their often comic adventures) blends well with crime fiction, as the works of Elmore Leonard and Carl Hiaasen so ably attest.

Reed delivers an impressive debut in this book, featuring fast-paced action, surprising plot twists and mildly endearing characters. That said, this is not an unflawed novel.

The characters are thinly developed and lack the underlying gravitas that supports the comic antics of writers like Leonard and Hiaasen. More seriously, Reed’s handling of a plot twist carries whiffs of homophobia.

But The Chairman’s Toys is an impressive first novel, and readers can hope for improvement in the books to follow. We may be hearing more from Constable and his creator.