Mahu Surfer: A Hawaiian Mystery
by Neil S. Plakcy
Published by Alyson
Click on book
cover to order
at Amazon.com
Reviewed by Patricia E. Reid
Surfing for some is a sport, but for others it is a life style.
Kimo Kanapa’aka has always surfed but now he is undercover for the police department and acting as though there is nothing in his life to be concerned with but surfing. Even his parents don’t know his real occupation and think he is just playing around on the north shore of Oahu. Kimo is not comfortable with the fact that he is not being honest with his friends and family, but his current situation offers him no alternative.
Kimo was released from his duties as a police officer when it became public knowledge that he was gay. Even his parents were in the dark and had to learn from a TV report that their son was gay.
Now he has a chance to return to the police department and a transfer to another division. The only problem is when he meets his new boss Sanford, he finds that he will be working undercover on a murder investigation. Three people have been murdered on the North Shore, and Sanford wants Kimo to investigate. He feels that the investigation has made little or no progress–and that Kimo is the right person for the job because he can fit into the surfing community at North Shore as well as the gay community.
Kimo accepts the assignment and finds very little connection between the three victims but he soon begins to dig up more and more information. Mahu Surfer is a mystery that will keep you guessing. A couple of more murders happen before Kimo gets the whole story sorted out and by that time Kimo has even been threatened.
This is a real page-turner and a good mystery. Some readers might be turned-off by the sex scenes but overall it is a good read. Mahu Surfer gives quite a bit of insight into what it is like for a gay man to come out of the closet. Some people understand–and others are very cruel.
Armchair Interviews says: A unique blend of mystery, surfing and sexual orientation.
Author’s Website: http://www.MahuBooks.com