Green Monster (Sam Skarda Mysteries)
Description
After a second World Championship in four years, the Boston Red Sox have finally buried the Curse of the Bambino— or have they? Sox owner Louis Kenwood receives an extortion note signed "Babe Ruth" claiming that the 2004 World Series was fixed—and demanding $50 million to keep the information from getting to the press and the Commissioner's office.
If the allegation of a fix becomes public, Kenwood fears irreparable damage to the value of his franchise and to his legacy as Lucky Louie, a the man who finally brought a championship to Boston after 86 years. Thus, the Red Sox turn to private detective Sam Skarda to find out who's behind the extortion plot.
Kenwood insists that his beautiful executive assistant Heather Canby accompany—and monitor—Sam on every step of his investigation. Unsure whom he can trust, Sam follows the clues to the Los Angeles underworld and then to the slums of Venezuela. Can he assemble all of the pieces to this puzzle before more lives are lost and scandal blasts the Red Sox Nation? Green Monster is the second novel in the Sam Skarda series, following Amen Corner.
Praise for Green Monster (Sam Skarda Mysteries)
"Like a pitcher changing speeds, Shefchik takes enough off his characterizations to avoid straight-out stereotypes, and he spins a fair simile now and then—a pitch he should add to his regular repertoire." —Publishers Weekly
"First, it’s a genuinely clever mystery, with the blackmailer not revealed until the last few pages. Second, Skarda is a likable rogue mined from the same vein as Bill Tapply’s Brady Coyne or Ed Gorman’s Sam McCain. Third, the baseball and pop-music trivia scattered throughout provide both a subtle soundtrack and a context for the passion that comes with being a citizen of Red Sox Nation." —Booklist
