Reviewed by Becca
TITLE: The Less Than Spectacular Times of Henry Milch
SERIES: Wyandot County Mysteries #1
AUTHOR: Marshall Thornton
PUBLISHER: Kenmore Books
LENGTH: 236 pages
RELEASE DATE: April 28, 2020
BLURB:
A new mystery series from the award-winning author of the Boystown and Pinx Mystery series.
Things have not been going well for Henry Milch. After a Saturday night clubbing in his beloved West Hollywood, he took one pill too many and ended up banished to northern lower Michigan to live on a farm with his ultra-conservative grandmother. It was that or rehab.
While working a part-time job for the local land conservancy he stumbles across a dead body in the snow—as if things couldn’t get worse. But then things take a turn for the better, there’s a reward for information leading the man’s killer. All Henry has to do is find the murderer, claim the reward and he can go back to his real life in L.A.
REVIEW:
I’ve got to say first of all, if I get the title of this book wrong somewhere, please forgive me. I’ve been messing it up so bad. I really enjoyed this book because, of course, I love a good murder mystery and Marshall Thornton is good at them. I just had a hard time with Henry at times. But then I have to remember at that age, everyone thinks they’re invincible and that no one wants to admit they have a problem.
I wouldn’t want to be in Henry’s shoes. After partying a little too hard and popping one too many pills, he ended up in a hospital because his roommate thought he OD’ed. And now because of it, his mother was allowed to check him out and send him somewhere to keep an eye on him. In nowhere Michigan, with his grandmother, who is a religious fanatic and driving him nuts. And no, she doesn’t know he’s gay, which is really starting to get to him. But when a mysterious note shows up at the job he’s working at, he goes to investigate and finds a dead body. And soon finds out there’s a reward, which for him means a way to go back to L.A. But as Henry digs further into this death, he’s finding out some info that some don’t want found and now his life is in danger. And he may not make it out alive.
I love a good murder mystery and let me tell you, it’s shocking in a way who does it, because there is a LONG list of suspects. Even someone in law enforcement. And the motives are unbelievable. From cheating, to wills, to whatever you could just about think of. I understand why Henry wanted to get the reward. I’d want to get away from all he was dealing with there too. But it finally started to get to him that the person murdered was actually a person with a history and life. And even though he may have had his hands in a few pies, so to speak, he still didn’t deserve to die. And didn’t deserve the crap he had to deal with in his life. Just for being different. For being gay and being proud of it. But that’s unfortunately the way it still is in a lot of places. For every step forward, there’s twenty back. So, again, I got why he wanted to solve this. Not just because of the reward, which was enough in and of itself, but the more he found out about the victim, the more he wanted justice for this man. This man that people loved or hated. It was important to prove to everyone that life should still be cherished. Whether you agree with how they live or not.
There are a lot of things in this book that can make it a bit difficult at times. The religious crap, and the bigotry alone are enough to make you want to reach in and smack a few people. But there was much more to it. The secrets, the lies, the addictions and everything that goes with it. There’s a lot to handle at times. But it’s so good, for me, it’s worth it. And I can’t wait to see what comes next.
RATING: 
BUY LINK: