Bunny's Reviews: Grounders Review Spotlight

Welcome to the tour for Grounders by Leonard Love Matlick. Read on for more details!

Grounders is a crime mystery novel by Leonard Love Matlick. This police procedural novel details the day in the shoes of cop – Tony Philadelphia as he works alongside his partner to solve a grisly murder with mafia connections.

Grounders are one of those books that will quickly pique your interest as you dive into this book. You think that you’re going to be finding the murder after the fact, but the author has other plans. Brace yourself because he’s going to come at you with full force and leave you with your jaw on the floor.

I’ve never read a “police procedural” novel before, so I didn’t really know what to expect when it came to this book. I enjoy mysteries so I chose to approach this book from that angle and see simply where the author intended to take me. This book starts out with a “simple” murder, but it turns into something so much more page by page.

The author packs a lot of detail into this book. When you’re told “police procedural” the author isn’t joking. You’ll see, quite often, where the author takes time to break down the police jargon. You’ll also get explanations of regulations that cops must follow as well. All of this is very educational, however, it also slows the story down quite a bit. For those who spend a lot of time watching cop dramas, this information is going to be information you already know. For those who don’t, well, it will be quite informative and interesting. So, it’s really a flip of the coin how you will take those particular aspects of the novel. You’re definitely going to get the notion that the author is well educated in that particular arena.

When it comes to the characters, that’s where things take a bit of a turn for the negative. On one hand the story sounds like something that would be set back in the 50s or 60s. I say that based on how some of the characters act/interact, and how they tend to view women. Also, quite a few of the females’ behavior doesn’t really make you think “modern day.” Yet, the modern day is exactly where the author is setting this story. Just keep that in mind so that when you read “Uber” you’re not caught off guard like I was. The behavior of the characters doesn’t really seem to fit “modern” day behaviors. So, just try to stay as open-minded as possible.

The characters themselves are okay, but none really stand out for you to say “I really like THAT particular character.” The conversations come off as stilted and less than organic in their flow. This might be in part due to the “procedural” info often dropped in. There is also quite a bit of repetition of particular sentences that are constantly being reiterated. You’re going to feel that those aren’t really necessary, especially since they tend to happen not long after the initial mention. The repetition detracts from the story instead of adding to it.

If you’re going to include “sexual” scenes, don’t be afraid to go all in on it. For there to be a lot of hinting, drawing attention to the character’s being “aroused”, etc and then...nothing. It’s a letdown. I know that it’s not all really necessarily connected to the crimes, but if you’re going include it...do it all. Liners like “then they had lots of sex” is a letdown more or less. It’s a build-up that literally goes nowhere at all. The author spends so much time talking about the main character’s conquests, prowess, and how the ladies all want him, but you really don’t get any BANG! The expectation is constantly built up, but for there to be nothing just leads to huge disappointment. Less talk of his constant erections would probably be a good idea.

This book would have flowed better, in my opinion, if the author had chosen to focus on telling it from a particular perspective. If the story had been told from the first person – seeing the story through Tony’s eyes or a more focused third person this book would have been really good. As it is, I think that too much gets given away in particular scenes. Allow the reader to figure some things out as they read. Inserts like – “I have this feeling that there’s more to this than just a simple murder.” Followed by “Tony and Longo were right about (insert character.) It gives too much away. The point of a mystery novel is to connect the dots yourself, but have the right amount of information given just the same.

Grounders is a complex novel, but things get bogged down with the procedural info that gets dropped in throughout the book. I understand that the author didn’t want to assume that readers would know/understand some of the various jargon. However, it’s also a safe bet that if you’re reading a mystery/cop drama then you know the basics. More thought is needed to go into the conversations and interactions between the characters. They unfortunately fail to come across as organic or natural causing them to detract from the story.

I enjoy a good mystery novel packed with drama, but this book, unfortunately, falls short for me. I’m choosing to rate this book 3.5 out of 5 stars. The potential is there for this book, but it doesn’t quite reach it.

Thank you to the author, Leonard Love Matlick, and R&R Tours for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Grounders

Publication Date: April 30th, 2022

Genre: Police Procedural/ Crime Fiction

Grounders is cop slang for easy open and solved cases. A husband kills his wife, a bar-fight with a knife or a gun, cases quickly solved in two or three days. Cops love this and get credit for promotion for easily solving cases. In Grounders the NYPD cops find that this murder of a cook is much more than a simple grounder. It involves the Chinese Tong gangs in NYC, Peruvian rebels who want to overthrow their government by using “magic rocks” that were left from an alien civilization like Stargate in Machu-Picchu, and a love story between a detective and a Tong leader’s granddaughter. Grounders combines everything; murder, love, greed, drugs, and rebels amid the backdrop of detectives trying to solve a murder mystery.

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About the Author

Leonard Love Matlick is an engineer, writer, and life coach. He works designing and maintaining NYPD police precincts. He has previously published Cops lie! and The success and confidence manual.