A Blake Harte Mystery, Book 6 - Flatline

It's another impossible mystery for our intrepid sleuth, Blake Harte, to solve in this sixth installment of Robert Innes' mystery series.  Detective Sergeant Blake Harte has become one of my favorite sleuths, and Innes' has without a doubt become my definitely favorite author of gay mysteries for three simple facts:  (1) his mysteries are unique and mind-boggling at times, with impossible situations that keep the reader guessing the whole time; (2) the characters are very real and the reader can easily identify with them; and (3) Innes does not need explicit sex scenes to sell his stories - they are so well-written and engaging, they stand on their own!

Flatline finds Harte in the hospital to have his appendix removed. The poor guy is not only frustrated at being stuck in the hospital while his professional rival, Detective Sergeant Michael Gardiner, takes over his case load, but just before he collapsed in pain at home, he had been having quite the fight with Harrison (the love of his life) about the amount of time Harte has been spending at work.  Of course, there is that pesky little unsolved case of the woman who died the previous year, a victim of a hit-and-run.  Plus, Harte is convinced that Harrison knew what he was getting into when he moved in with him and began a relationship with him.  And he is convinced that Gardiner cannot possibly do as good a job as him.  So, to say he is a problem patient is putting it mildly.

Of course, Nurse Kelsey Richards has other things on her mind than Harte's obstinance. She and her boyfriend, Dr. Joe Tilsley, have a dark secret - one they have kept for exactly one year now. But as the anniversary of that secret arrives, so do the phone calls. And the text messages. And the videos. Someone knows their secret. Someone saw what they did and is out to extract justice once and for all. "The Watcher," as he calls himself (or she, they really can't tell), is watching them.  And that's when Dr. Tilsley turns up dead!

Now, remember, this is a Blake Harte mystery, so you know that death is going to be anything bur ordinary. Oh, no - Dr. Tilsley is found dead when the elevators door open. No gun, no knife, no wounds whatsoever. There is, however, traces of water around his mouth and nose (no water or dampness anywhere in the elevator, though). It turns out he died by drowning.  In a closed elevator with no one else in there with him?!?! Yes, this definitely looks like a case for the master puzzle-solver, D.S. Blake Harte. The only problem is, he is confined to the hospital bed following surgery to remove his appendix!  (Anyone who knows Harte, though, knows a little appendicitis isn't going to stop him from solving this case!)

Author Robert Innes provides yet another mind-boggling murder mystery with a seemingly impossible murder - it makes you wonder just what kind of research and planning Innes does in order to come up with these impossible crimes!  Innes provides some truly wonderful character development for the cast in this books - Harte, Gardiner, Harrison - they all learn some things about themselves and the people around them, and it truly makes the reader feel like they are a part of the family as you watch the characters develop more and more with each book.  And as for the mystery itself - it is definitely a doozy!  While it might not be overly difficult to figure out how he was murdered, it is the "whodunnit" that is the real puzzler this time.  Plenty of suspects, plenty of opportunity, and just when you think Harte has the murderer in his grasp, Innes throws in an unexpected twist that will definitely surprise you!

The Blake Harte mysteries is an ongoing soap opera of the lives of Harte, his partner, his friends, his co-workers, and the citizens of Harmschapel - the stories are engaging, the murders are unique, and the mysteries are creative.  This may very well be one of the absolute best murder mystery series on the market today, and I look forward to reading each and every one!

RATING:  10 surgical caps and masks out of 10 for keeping me on my toes until the very end trying to solve this one!