- Evil is like death; the truth lies beyond what the mortal eye can see, and only those who have been consumed by it can know what dreadful secrets hide under its disguise.
— Zachary Venshlin
Vasquez Private Eye is a novel published in 2014 by Edward Bardes. It features a police officer named Johnson Vasquez and his four childhood friends, Alex Andrews, Richard Ralston, and sisters Shannon and Zelda Thomson.
The story is told from Johnson's point of view, with the exception of four chapters involving accounts from his friends, and revolves around solving a series of botched court cases and murders being committed in the city, while also dealing with the characters' Dark and Troubled Past.
What questions are being posed, and what kind of answers are in store for them?
Vasquez Private Eye provides examples of:
- Alliterative Name: Alex Andrews and Richard Ralston.
- Battle Amongst the Flames: Downplayed. Venshlin sets a subway train on fire before fighting Johnson in the smoke-filled station.
- Big Bad: Zachary Venshlin / Martha Vasquez
- Chekhov's Gun: Shannon's drink mix is used as part of the Big Bad's plan.
- Chekhov's Gunman: The burglar who broke into Alex's store on his first night as Chide was hired by Martha as a hitman.
- Clean Food, Poisoned Fork: Martha subdued Johnson by drugging his silverware with dissolved sleeping pills.
- Dark and Troubled Past: All the central characters were sculpted in some way by the aftermath of a plane crash in Kansas City.
- Dartboard of Hate: Johnson sticks a picture of Rachel Dinesen on a dartboard during a game of darts with William York.
- Dead Man Writing: Martha writes a letter to Johnson explaining her actions, which he reads while in the hospital after the climactic subway battle.
- Decapitation Presentation: Johnson shows off Martha's head to his friends and colleagues after escaping the burning subway tunnel.
- Foreshadowing: Clues to the killer's identity:
- Venshlin is stated to have walked with a slight limp.
- Shannon and Zelda take on a masculine change after drinking the drinks made from Shannon's drink mix.
- The fourth note appeared in the cooler after Martha showed up.
- Go Mad from the Revelation: Johnson's Aunt Bethany flees to Paris after Johnson reveals her sister to be the mastermind of the murders committed in the book.
- Good Policing, Evil Policing: Downplayed; Rachel's investigation implicates protagonist Detective Johnson Vasquez (who is conducting his own investigation) as the killer, and while she does turn out to be an Alpha Bitch Social Climber, the real killer sought to frame Johnson for the murders as revenge for accidentally enabling a Karma Houdini moment years earlier.
- Good Smoking, Evil Smoking: Martha secretly took up smoking after the Kansas City crash. She also smokes a cigarette during Johnson's summation of the case.
- He Knows Too Much: Or at least was the greatest detective in the city and wouldn't take too long to solve the case.
- Human Head on the Wall: The novel ends with Johnson mounting Martha's head on his bedroom wall.
- Improbable Weapon User: The murder weapon in the death of William's father was an airbag in a microwave.
- Satchel is stabbed in the throat with an icicle.
- Literal Metaphor: Lampshaded repeatedly when the group searches the late Gary McCrery's barn for needles in haystacks.
- Narrative Profanity Filter: Most of the swear words are replaced with words from the NATO Phonetic Alphabet.
- Red Right Hand: Martha lost her left kneecap in the Kansas City crash, and walks with a limp; Venshlin is mentioned to walk as if "there were sycamore seeds in his left shoe".
- Shout-Out:
- Alex's dual personalities are Dr. Chuckle and Mr. Chide. Need we say more?
- Putting an airbag in the microwave as a form of murder and attempted murder.
- The letter written by the killer is prefaced with "My Wayward Son".
- Significant Anagram: Zachary Jacques Tolono Venshlin is an anagram of Johnson Charlie Clayton Vasquez.
- Unusual Euphemism: Most of the curse words in the story are swapped out with words from the NATO Phonetic Alphabet.
- Xanatos Gambit: Two characters put these in action:
- Death Seeker William York killed his father and almost killed Patrick as a last-ditch attempt to resolve his financial situation after being fired by Firebird Airlines. He hoped that if the plan failed, he would receive the death penalty for his crime. The gambit backfired because his new lawyer insisted he fight the case, and was acquitted in spite of his guilt.
- Martha also seemed to be a Death Seeker out to kill the lawyers and judge who got Firebird acquitted for their role in the crash of Flight 934, as well as her only surviving son for his actions that night. At least get as far as she could before being killed or killing herself.
- Xanatos Speed Chess: When trying to rob Alex's store failed due to a drink mix made by Shannon, Martha sought out the recipe and used it herself to become a lawyer and get truly guilty defendants acquitted of the crimes they committed.
- Year X: The year the main plot takes place is left vague, but there are clues as to what year it takes place in.
