Reviewed by Taylin
TITLE: Down But Not Out
SERIES: The Pinkerton Man #5
AUTHOR: CJ Baty
PUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 122 pages
RELEASE DATE: August 31, 2022
BLURB:
Stiles finds himself torn between his loyalty to his agency director and friend, James McCullough, and his loyalty to friend Lizzie Ferguson and his lover Michael O’Leary. He can’t explain the overwhelming feelings of darkness that he feels.
When the new director of the St. Louis Pinkerton Agency, fires Lizzie and Michael, then pairs Stiles up with a new agent, things begin to unravel all around Stiles.
Lying to everyone, he heads to Chicago where James McCullough and other agents have disappeared. Determined to find his friend and discover what is really going on in the Levee District, Stiles finds himself with no one he can depend on.
Meanwhile, Lizzie moves back to New York to work in the Pinkerton office there with an old friend. And, Michael discovers he’s inherited an estate in England from his mother’s side of his family.
The group of friends are being pulled apart in different directions. There’s corruption around every corner. No one can be trusted. Can they find their way back to who they were before? Will Stiles be able to pull himself out of the hell he’s in before he loses everything? So this is hell…
REVIEW:
While in Europe, Stiles receives a message that his friend and director of the Pinkerton Agency, James, was missing and presumed dead. The news knocks him for six. James was a man ahead of his time, free-thinking and accepting. Stiles smells a rat and intends to investigate. While traveling back to the USA, Stiles slips into despair – even more so when his friend, Lizzie, and lover Michael are separated from him, causing rifts and uncertainty.
I am a fan of CJ Baty’s work and have been for some time. She has a way of writing emotionally atmospheric stories. She stays true to the plot line without getting sidetracked. And while worldbuilding isn’t extensive, she still creates a picture in the mind that compliments the plot without it being overshadowed – perfect for my reading tastes. I hoped that Down But Not Out would follow this scenario, and I wasn’t disappointed.
This story is a darker venture than some previous works, delving into the seedier side of Chicago’s life of drugs, brothels, and the criminals lording over the streets. It was delicious to read characters with ulterior motives and double-crossers mixed with those trying to do good – it made for a great web of deceit where the end was not foreseen nor could be predicted. The opening pages are emotional, and I felt it through every word as Stiles slipped into soul-wrenching darkness where the worry from those close to him was palpable. In those early paragraphs, his own thoughts emphasized a spiral that I found realistic. From then on, I was hooked on this story.
Down But Not Out is book five in the Pinkerton Man series. It is told in the third person, primarily from the viewpoint of Stiles. Occasionally, in conversations, I wasn’t sure who was talking but overall, the story is technically sound. One of the many things that I loved was how seamlessly the scenes flowed. Nothing felt forced or engineered.
The dynamic between Stiles and Michael is delightful; whenever the two are intimate, the liaisons are subtle, tender, and worded appropriately for the era of the story. Stiles is a man with considerable experience, and it shows in every action and thought. He also does what is necessary to protect those he loves. And while Michael doesn’t get as much physical airtime, he is never far away from Stiles’ thoughts.
I must put a shout-out here for Lizzy. Damn, that woman is a scene stealer.
Anyhoo, onto the plot. I am not going to say too much here as I try my best not to do spoilers. But, what I will say is – imagine a lattice – no, scratch that. I don’t honestly know what to say, except the plot is complex without being confusing (my aged brain cells kept up nicely) – but you don’t know it’s intricate until the end. Everything makes sense while it’s happening, but apart from a couple of things, nothing is predictable.
I found, Down But Not Out, a gritty page-turner whose main characters could melt hearts and blow your balls off with a derringer if necessary. The closer I came to the end, the faster I wanted to read, yet I didn’t want to miss a word.
RATING: 
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