The Fraud

May 4, 2015
In Parks’s entertaining sixth mystery to feature Newark, N.J., reporter Carter Ross (after 2014’s The Player), Kevin Tiemeyer, the driver of a Jaguar, and Joseph Okeke, the driver of a BMW, are killed in seemingly unrelated carjackings two weeks apart. After Carter learns that Tiemeyer and Okeke golfed together at an upscale country club a month earlier, he suspects the club’s manager of orchestrating the car thefts, but his myopic focus on one suspect leads him to neglect another, putting the lives of his pregnant girlfriend and their unborn child in jeopardy. For a supposed Pulitzer Prize finalist, Carter has an implausible tendency to jump to conclusions on flimsy evidence and make poor judgment calls. Most of the cast is one-dimensional, and while Parks has fun with the stereotypes (hardworking immigrant, flamboyant gay flirt, rich girl with a heart of gold), his characters never manage to transcend them. Still, this is a fast-paced, often-funny read, and details about Newark and the decline of traditional newspapers add gritty realism. Agent: Dan Conaway, Writers House.

May 1, 2015
A series of not-so-random carjackings investigated by Newark Eagle-Examiner reporter Carter Ross ends up as a race between the paddy wagon, the shotgun, and the stork. Carjacking is so deeply ingrained in Newark culture that the locals have developed a tactic called "the Newark Cruise"-not quite stopping at red lights after dark-to avoid it. When banking executive Kevin Tiemeyer gets shot for his Rolex during what should have been a routine carjacking, however, it gets the attention of Tina Thompson, the Eagle-Examiner's managing editor for local news. And when she sics Carter, father of the baby she's about to deliver, on the story, he quickly connects it to the remarkably similar carjacking of Nigerian-born businessman Joseph Okeke two weeks earlier. Both men were shot after surrendering their cars, and the two of them, Carter learns with a little digging, had golfed together at the Fanwood Country Club. Naturally, Earl Karlinsky, the Fanwood's general manager, doesn't take kindly to Carter's accusations that Karlinsky himself is setting up his members to be victimized, and Fanwood board member Armando "Doc" Fierro, the fixer's fixer, succeeds in getting Carter suspended after he crosses the fine line from aggressive journalism to unauthorized spying. But Carter, who's convinced himself that Dave Gilbert, the director of Chariots for Children, is not only an ex-con, but the head of a thriving chop shop, won't let go-even though the person who'll pay the heaviest price for his snooping is his pregnant girlfriend. Less funny and more deeply felt than Carter's first five cases (The Player, 2014, etc.): reliable entertainment that'll make you think twice about your next trip to Newark.

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June 1, 2015
Carjackings are so common in Newark that they are hardly news. But the media does buzz when carjackers murder suburban father and banking executive Kevin Tiemeyer, and investigative reporter Carter Ross (The Player, 2014) resolves to highlight the double standard by contrasting Tiemeyer with a victim whose murder went unnoticed. Nigerian immigrant and successful businessman Joseph Okeke left behind three children, and Carter senses a golden story when he learns that Okeke's insurance company hasn't paid the family. Then Carter discovers that Tiemeyer and Okeke knew each other and were likely killed by the same carjackers, and the story morphs into an investigation of a murderous carjacking crew. And, if Carter's theory is correct, he's placed himself and his pregnant girlfriend and editor, Tina Thompson, in the gang's crosshairs. The impending birth of Carter and Tina's baby raises the stakes, giving Parks' sixth Carter Ross story a more serious, reflective tone than previous entries, noted for their comedic appeal. Series fans should rest assured, however, that Carter's witty turns of phrase are still in evidence, and his undeterrable investigating is as engaging as ever.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)