House on Fire

Starred review from November 18, 2019
Nick Heller takes on big pharma in Thriller Award–winner Finder’s excellent fourth novel featuring the Boston PI (after 2016’s Guilty Minds). Sean Lenehan, who saved Heller’s life when they were in Afghanistan as members of a Special Forces team, has died from an overdose of the painkiller Oxydone. At Lenehan’s funeral, Heller is approached by Sukie Kimball, daughter of Conrad Kimball, the head of Kimball Pharma, which produces Oxydone. She explains that she attends the funerals of many of those who have died as a result of her family’s product in order “to bear witness to the victims of the drug that made us all rich.” Sukie hires Heller to find and steal the smoking gun that will bankrupt Kimball Pharma and send Conrad to prison—a study that demonstrated Oxydone’s addictive nature suppressed before the drug was put on the market. Heller agrees. The stakes rise when he goes undercover as Sukie’s boyfriend at Conrad’s Katonah, N.Y., home, where a copy of the study might be hidden, and ends up investigating a murder. Fans of timely, thoughtful page-turners will be richly rewarded. Five-city author tour. Agent: Dan Conaway, Writers House.

Holter Graham narrates the fourth Nick Heller novel, in which the private investigator infiltrates a powerful family hiding a sinister secret. At the funeral of an army buddy who suffered from opiate addiction, Nick is approached by a member of the Kimball Pharmaceutical family who offers credible information suggesting his friend was murdered. Graham imbues Nick with youthful energy balanced by a steely demeanor when trouble arises. A colorful cast, including a combative drug addict and a handful of children, are given unique voices. Keeping the story on an even keel with the clever use of pacing and dialogue inflection, Graham provides a stellar narration. J.M.M. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award � AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine