MacDonald deftly juggles all the plot balls he throws in the air in his solid thriller debut. Dermot Sparhawk, an aspiring pro football player whose career was derailed by a knee injury, tries to remain sober while running a food pantry in Boston's impoverished Charlestown neighborhood. Then his godfather, Jeepster Hennessey, who served with his father in Vietnam, stumbles into his workplace, hands him a key, and utters "Oswego" before expiring of a knife wound in the back. When Sparhawk begins asking around for information that could lead to justice for his dead friend, he draws the attention of an attractive FBI agent, Emma Hague, part of a terrorism task force, who believes there may be a link between Hennessey's murder and the threat of a major attack by Somali terrorists on liquid natural gas shipments. While a romance predictably develops between Sparhawk and Hague, the convincing if convoluted resolution and the book's dogged, flawed hero auger well for a successful series. (Aug.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Ex-drunk and ex-football player Dermot Sparhawk is just beginning his new life, 30 days after hitting bottom, when his godfather, Jeepster Hennessey, staggers into Dermot's office with a knife sticking out of his back. Jeepster murmurs one last word, passes Dermot a key, and dies. Dermot discovers that Jeepster has left quite a trail behind him as various parties from the local IRA, the Boston police, and even the FBI grace his door. Trusting only his closest buddies, Dermot wades into this mess and uncovers an art forgery ring that challenges assumptions in the city's highest art circles. It's all about strategy (remember those football plays) in this ambitious debut. VERDICT Brisk pacing and plenty of bad guys keep the pages turning in MacDonald's art heist tale. The jump into art forgery is a big leap, but Mac-Donald keeps all his plays moving in a winning style. He introduces intriguing, flawed characters and atypical neighborhoods, making for a highly entertaining read. (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

It's to his credit that MacDonald has set his debut novel in territory that is very familiar to mystery readers: the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston (an area associated with Chuck Hogan and Dennis Lehane). That took guts. It also took some real skill to make the novel stand out among such stiff competition. Dermot Sparhawk, a former college football star, is stunned when his ex-con godfather, Jeepster Hennessey, is murdered (Jeepster dies right in front of Dermot, from a stab wound to the back). Before he dies, Jeepster gives Dermot a brass key and a cryptic clue. Figuring this could be something important, Dermot withholds the information from the police (and from the FBI, who seem unusually interested in the murder of this small-time crook). As he follows his only clue, Dermot puts together a theory about his godfather's murder, but if he's right, it means his own life is on the line, too. The author works the FBI, the IRA, organized crime, and even some Native American lore into this noirish tale of murder and misdirection. A solid debut.--Pitt, David Copyright 2010 Booklist