Mr. Monk and the Dirty Cop-Lee Goldberg

Mr. Monk and the Dirty Cop
Lee Goldberg
Obsidian, Aug 2009, $22.95
ISBN: 9780451226983

When tragedy struck SFPD Detective Adrian Monk, he had a nervous breakdown; when he recovered he suffered from a severe case of obsessive compulsive disorder. He no longer functions as a cop yet remains brilliant at solving mysteries. His former superior Captain Leland Stottlemeyer uses him as a paid consultant on the most difficult cases, but begins to detest the fact that Mr. Monk gets the praise while he receives scorn and derision.

The Captain swears to Mr. Monk he is not jealous, but the latter’s assistant Natalie believes otherwise. However, the captain soon lets Monk and Natalie go due to budget cuts. Angrily she wants her boss to find a new job within the private sector. Nicholas Slade, CEO of the Internect private security and investigation firm, hires Monk, who accepts the position because of the benefits. While Monk solves cases at an incredible pace, Stottlemeyer is arrested for killing a criminal informant suffering from Alzheimer’s. The captain swears he was framed and asks his friend and colleague whom he fired to find the real culprit. Even Natalie wants Monk to take the case on, which he does.

No one writes books based on popular TV series better than Lee Goldberg consistently does as the author always catches the essence of the key characters and their prevalent traits; in this case obviously the OCD. Mr. Monk in spite of his crippling illness gets around solving crimes at a Guinness Book of records rate. Natalie is protective of Monk so she lashes out at those who harm him like the captain did. Although the prime case takes time to become front and center, fans will enjoy Mr. Monk’s latest adventures as he solves case after case after case.

Harriet Klausner