Son of a Gun: A Sydney Sloane Mystery

by Randye Lordon

New York City private investigator Sydney Sloane has enough drama in her own family to make her normally shy away from such cases professionally. But this one is different. Her friend, and father of her godchild, Captain John Cannady of the NYPD has been critically shot in the hallway of his own apartment building, with few traces of the shooter left behind. Just after the shooting, his wife Peggy got a call from a man claiming to be the son she gave up for adoption after an unfortunate teen pregnancy. His claims and his desire for revenge chills the already upset wife. With four days to find some sort of solution, Sydney agrees to track down the long-ago child and protect the family of the man clinging to life in the hospital. With her own family undergoing a tramatic situation of its own, Sloane's skills are put to their ultimate test.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312291310
• ISBN13: 9780312291310
• Release Date: February 2005
• Publisher: Minotaur Books
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.4" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Super Read

I've enjoyed Lordon's mysteries in the past, but this one is just a super read. I loved it. It's characters are interesting and fun, it's plot exciting, and it's tone refreshing. A must for anyone who loves to read and anyone who loves to read mysteries.

Simply The Best

There is a lyric from a Bruce Springsteen Song which goes something like, " Simply The Best, Better Than All The Rest. " That sentiment is an appropriate description of Randye Lordon's newest Sidney Sloan mystery, SON OF A GUN. While all of Ms. Lordon's novels are marvelous and entertaining, this one stands out like a sparkling diamond on a bed of perfect pearls. The reader is immediately immersed in the center of a fascinating police drama. Familiar characters from previous novels in the series are joined by interesting new personalities. Suspense builds and builds until you completely forget that you are reading. This novel is not only captivating and educational, it also contains something generally unexpected in this type of fiction. There are some poignant insights into the frailties of human relationships that we will all identify with. Ms. Lordon is at her literary peak in Son of a Gun, and we can only hope she will continue to produce these literary marvels. This one, however, will be hard to beat.

A fantastic private investigative tale

Domestic cases are the type that normally intrepid New York City private investigator Sydney Sloane avoids though not out of fear of being physically hurt. These scenes are too much like what her family life has always been, so mentally to difficult to deal with for some minor pittance. Although in reality, involuntarily Sydney seems always embroiled with dangerous scenarios involving members of her family from sister, brother, father mother, uncle to niece. She thanks god everyday that she is a lesbian or else she would add husband, boyfriend, and child to her list; so far her lover Leslie has made no sleuthing demands on her. Someone shoots New York Police Department Captain John Cannady, the father of Sydney's godchild. Not long afterward, as John lies in a Manhattan hospital in critical condition, his spouse Peggy receives a death call from someone insisting he is the son she gave away as a teen; the sinister caller insists murder of her and her loved ones will follow. Sydney voluntarily investigates the adopted child of Peggy while vowing to keep John's family safe, not realizing how dangerous her pledge is. This is a fabulous private investigative tale starring one of the bright lights of the Manhattan sleuthing universe. Sydney is a fantastic as she struggles with finding the lost son, keeping everyone safe, and dealing with family crisis like Aunt Minnie's latest plumbing issue all while Leslie is in California. The who-done-it is cleverly handled so that the audience sees Sydney at her best trying to resolve the case and having other woes. Randye Lordon provides another winning Sloane mystery. Harriet Klausner