Freedom Drop

Len Buonfiglio/Caribbean Mystery, #1

by

Brian Silverman

Exciting action, tragic deaths, and secrets someone will kill to keep hidden.

Freedom Drop is the first book in author Brian Silverman’s atmospheric Len Buonfiglio/Caribbean Mystery series set on the island of St. Pierre. The tale’s tough action and magnetic main character are definitely a winning combination. 

Having gained a reputation among his bar patrons and native neighbors for being able to help when the police can’t or won’t, bar owner Len Buonfiglio reluctantly takes on the case of a local man accused of complicity in the death of a tourist just as his 16-year-old daughter, Kasie, arrives for her spring break visit. His involvement is swiftly noticed by someone who doesn’t want him poking around in the case, and Len is soon visited by a pair of toughs with hard methods of persuasion in mind. Len Buonfiglio, or Mr. Len as he is known to the other inhabitants of St. Pierre, is a quiet, reluctant hero, dogged in his pursuit of the truth, and armed with only a sharp mind, clever wit, and  rusty martial arts skills. 

The plot follows Len as he learns of the arrest of “Big Tree” Rawle Johns, a local tourist guide known for his quiet, dignified manner and obvious love for his island home and her history. Well acquainted with the respected single father of one, Len is skeptical of Big Tree’s involvement in Deanna Gould’s death the previous year at the island’s historic and sacred landmark, the Freedom Drop, which until recently had been ruled an accident or suicide. 

Len is returning home from picking up Kasie at the airport when they witness police taking Big Tree into custody. He is soon contacted by the man’s elderly mother, who implores Len to intervene with the police on her son’s behalf. The story escalates quickly as strangers to the island interfere with Len’s low-key inquiries. At the same time, he attempts to reconnect with his only daughter on her first visit since the dissolution of his marriage to her mother five years earlier. The visits from outsiders are surprising, and the results are shocking. I could understand Len’s immediate concerns for his daughter’s safety and his conflicting emotions about ending her long-awaited and much-anticipated first visit earlier than planned, as well as what he would tell his ex-wife when he did so. 

The author’s writing absolutely drew me into his story from the very beginning, and Len and other characters, such as Tubby, soon felt like people I actually knew. Similarly, Silverman’s vivid, evocative descriptions of his settings placed me side by side with Len on St. Pierre. The plot is gritty, and the action is decisive as Len works his way to the truth behind the young woman’s death almost a year earlier. 

I recommend FREEDOM DROP to mystery readers who enjoy a reluctant and less traditional yet still resolute private investigator protagonist. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours.