Nighthawks

Whoever said crime doesn’t pay can’t have been doing it right.

If you like an action-packed read with lots of location changes, this is the mystery book for you! Lambert Nagle is the penname for Alison Ripley Cubitt and her husband Sean Cubitt, who co-write international thrillers, mystery and crime. Inspired by a trip to Rome where they were victims of two scams, “Nighthawks,” book two of the Detective Stephen Connor series, is a conspiracy thriller that examines what happens when art, money and power collide.

A Mafia boss addicted to beautiful art. A catholic priest who knows too much. A modern-day Jay Gatsby. And a woman on the run.

Detective Stephen Connor is in a bit of a bind. He’s been reassigned to Rome for three months. It doesn’t sound like too much of a hardship, does it? Except, his wedding date falls in the middle of those three months. A wedding planned and paid for and expected to take place in London. Not willing to risk his job, he breaks the news to his fiancée and, dejected, jets off to the eternal city. If only he wasn’t so low on the totem pole.
He’s been assigned to an art looting case and has to find the world’s most valuable painting before it disappears forever. What he discovers, in the process, is that the real villains in ‘to order’ art looting are the middlemen and those at the top. The ones who do the stealing are at the bottom of the theft ring and receive so little in comparison to the organizers and acquirers. Downtrodden and dejected at the beginning of the story, he discovers that he’s exactly where he needs to be, doing what he loves to do and that against all odds, he’s survived.

Sure to have your heart pounding, this book will satisfy your thirst for travel at a time when it’s restricted. An eclectic collection of characters who come to life under the duos pen, quirky Detective Connor will irritate you and you’ll want to scream advice to him. I believe this works to his advantage as a character and creates tension and reader involvement. The answers to his problems may come easy to the reader, but the disgraced detective holds the power. I imagined him as Peter Falk, the ‘one more thing’ detective from the L.A. crime drama, Columbo. The locations and the character development are the stars of this mystery and it’s obvious that the duo poured their heart and soul into this story. This novel has strong potential for screen adaptation. Considering it’s their forte, I won’t be surprised.

Thank you to Lambert Nagle, BooksGoSocial and NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Publishes March 15, 2021.

Nighthawks by Lambert Nagle is the second book in a series but it works well as a standalone as the authors give us enough background to make this easy enough to read, which is a good job as I haven't read the first one yet.
This is an international crime thriller with a Scotland Yard detective Stephen Connor as our main character. Stephen is sent out to Rome to work with the Italian Police investigating illicit art dealing, his fiancée is not best pleased that he is abroad but needs must. Is Stephen going to be any help in recovering the art before it is gone for good, or not?
A book which is an interesting read as well. I loved the art side of it all, with things like art forgery and the black market and the history all being part and parcel, another book in which I felt like I was being educated as well as entertained. This thriller has everything, not just the art, there is a mafia side to it, a corrupt police officer and a dash of romance! An enticing and very addictive story.
I liked Stephen as a character he is as human as they come and a good character to follow in this story. The cast of characters in this book are wide, varied and as you can tell come from plenty of different walks of life...some legal, some not! There is never a dull moment I can tell you. A thriller that is worth the "thriller" label.
Thanks to netgalley for my copy of the book for my review today.

Good if you love a war story, would be better if the writing was less male minded. Slow paced with intrigue.

A mystery thriller featuring art, murder, the mafia, and a disgraced catholic priest.

Detective Stephen Conner is forced to follow an art theft to Rome. He begins to unravel a huge theft ring and ends up coming face to face with more than he bargained for.

This book reminded me very much of Dan Brown/Robert Langdon. It was a great adventure and a real page turner!

*I was provided an arc by Netfalley and the publisher for my honest feedback.

Art theft, international conspiracies, the Mafia...
I love novels that take me to new places away from the boring same-old. In that sense this book did not disappoint. Much of the action takes place in Italy. Having visited the main tourist cities I was able to see the story unfolding in my mind's eye. I cannot vouch for how accurate the politics etc depicted in the novel were, but it felt authentic.
Reading this made me want to actually Google the artworks mentioned!
It is not a page turner but plods on in true police procedural fashion until the climax at the end where all the loose ends tie up in a neat package.

Art, mafia and law enforcement with lots of action. I don't give much thought to stolen art unless it is headline news. So I found this story very interesting. There were twists and turns as the story progresses. McCarthy is one I found most interesting. A crooked priest indebted to the mafia. The book was full of interesting characters with each one having their own twist to the whole story. I liked the book!

This was a terrific read. I will be doing a full review after my book group reads it but it was amazing. Well plotted, fast paced, memorable, atmospheric, and believable characters. First rate thriller fiction.

When art, money and power collide…

A Mafia boss addicted to beautiful art. A Catholic priest who knows too much. A modern-day Jay Gatsby. And a woman on the run.

Disgraced London detective Stephen Connor is given an ultimatum: take a transfer to Rome or kiss his career goodbye. With his love life in tatters and his confidence at an all-time low, can Stephen find the world’s most valuable painting before it disappears forever?"


Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!
As a fan of murder mystery thriller books, I enjoy this one just fine. It's pretty fast so please beware. As per usual, full of twists here and there. It can be a bit confusing for someone who's not a fan of thriller but it's worth the try. The cover is also so pretty!