Joe Klingler

Burn Up is the second Secret of Mylin novel by Joe Klingler, continuing the intense mystery and thrills of Tune Up. With her father dead, and eldest brother gravely injured, Mylin has put herself and her orchestra family in the hands of Bear and Joe, hoping to keep them safe. Tuson is still free, though, and with the checks of Elder Wu and Jing holding him at bay gone, he decides to take over the running of the American side of the business. But the GO Orchestra was just a cover for a ring of highly paid prostitutes. No, they were so much more. As Shen seeks to eliminate witnesses and corral the orchestra back under his thumb, bodies begin piling up, making more work for Kandy and Qigiq. Even after they are pulled by the FBI from investigating the Wu case, they keep managing to stumble back into the heart of things. Not that they'd planned to abandon Mylin and the other girls. Question is, can they stop Shen in time?

This installment is even more an action packed ride than the first. There's international espionage, and science even Tony Stark would be proud of. This go 'round, we had third person chapters following Qigiq, and Mylin, along with first person chapters following Shen, instead of Joe. That was an interesting choice, but certainly fit with Shen feeling the centre of everything, while Mylin and Qigiq worked to help others. I enjoyed once again recignising things from living near Pacifica. The interaction between Qigiq and Kandy was priceless. Just as entertaining is that between Ferd and Petr. We get to see more of Ferd, the computer genius, and I loved it! I think he's my favourite character after Qigiq. That ending, though! It absolutely floored me, after everything else. This book ended on a far more definitive transition than the previous one. Everyone is left changed, not for the better. I want to know what will happen to Mylin, and if Qigiq will stay in San Francisco. There was a brief blurb for the third Mylin book, Lock Up, but no release date. I want the next one now!!

***This book was reviewed for the Seattle Book Review… (mais)

***This book was reviewed for the San Francisco Book Review

Klingler's Tune Up: Secret of Mylin is an intense mystery set in modern day California and Nevada. It begins with a questionable traffic accident that proves to be less an accident than premeditation upon closer inspection. An elderly Chinese woman is struck by a motorcycle while going over a crosswalk. Homicide detectives Qigiq and Kandy are assigned to the case, though the victim still lives. Their search for the hit and run motorcyclist leads them to the Ton Up Club, where they put in play an elaborate plan to get in good with the bikers, and to hopefully find bikers matching the sparse description. Their inquiries stir up a buzz. Languishing in this case, they are assigned to find a missing person, one Rudy Spooner. A series of pics and video sent to the police find the missing Spooner, as his car goes over a cliff along the infamous Devil’s Slide. A second victim of that plunge ties their two cases together. Unfortunately, that leaves far more questions than answers. Who is Pé and how is she connected to Mrs Chong, the hit-and-run victim? How does Spooner tie into things?

A second storyline plays out between photographer Joe Roberts and violist Mylin. Months before, he had snapped Mylin's picture unbeknownst to her, while outside a concert. She comes into his booth at an art show in California, several states from Ann Arbor Michigan, where the picture had been taken. Joe learns she is with the GO Orchestra, musicians for hire. In a bid to see her again, he books a night with a violist through the orchestra, requesting Mylin.

After dinner, she gets him to go with her to a charity auction performance, where he gets the beginnings of an idea about just what kind of business this orchestra really runs. Mylin then asks Jo to take her to San Francisco, where her grandmother is hospitalised. As Pé is found, and Mylin comes to visit Mrs Chong, the two storylines are woven tighter and tighter together. What is GO’s secret? Why was Mrs Chong struck by a motorcycle on purpose? Will Joe be able to help Mylin in the way he wants to be able to?

I absolutely devoured this book! Klingler takes a unique tact, writing all of Joe’s sections in first person, and all the rest in third person. This created a unique dynamic, affecting how I felt towards certain characters. I enjoyed both storylines, finding Qigiq and Kandy’s humour and working relationship to be quite amusing, while finding Mylin and Joe to be rather endearing. Joe really wants to protect this girl he's only just met. And I loved Ferd! He is a lab rat, with the same wry humour as Qigiq and Kandy. This is the second book in this set, and I went and snagged the first Qigiq and Kandy novel. Looking forward to it!!

Another aspect of the story that I loved was that it is set very near my home. I pass the now closed Devil’s Slide, into Pacifica every day. The Slide was replaced by tunnels through Montara Mountain for safety, as cars were prone to go over the cliff in that dangerous area. They still occasionally do go over, along parts of the road.

📚📚📚📚📚 Highly recommended!… (mais)