Review: The Run-out Groove (The Vinyl Detective Series)

The Run-out Groove is the second book in Andrew Cartmel’s The Vinyl Detective Series. The Vinyl Detective specializes in finding copies of rare albums.

Storyline

In this story, he is hired to find a missing child – the child of a rock star (Valerian) who killed herself in the 1960s. Valerian was working on an album prior to her death. Nearly all copies were destroyed and never distributed – but does the album contain a clue about where her missing son may be? The Vinyl Detective goes to work to find a copy of the missing album.

It seems odd that someone who specializes in finding albums would be hired to find a missing person. It would have made more sense to hire a private detective and have him engage specialists (such as the Vinyl Detective) as needed. To his credit, the author (and character) readily admit that the arrangement is odd, but why turn down money?

The pursuit of the incredibly rare album is much easier than I would have expected. The Vinyl Detective ends up finding it in the first place he looks. Overall, the story is interesting enough, but seems to wander a bit at times.

Characters

The characters are definitely the strength of the book. Most of them are just a wee bit odd, which makes the book a lot of fun.. My favorite is Tinkler – a guy who is always willing to help out his friends, but is often lacking when it comes to social skills.

Verdict

The Run-out Groove doesn’t have a particularly tight storyline, but the somewhat loose storyline fits the makeup of the characters. It’s a fun read, if you’re looking for a light and meandering read.

The Run-out Groove is available today, May 9.

[Disclaimer: I received a free copy of The Run-out Groove for review purposes.]