Reviews - Detroit Breakdown
Library Journal
"Johnson’s spooky third series entry (after Motor City Shakedown) ensures its place among hot new historicals.His unique take on Detroit in the early 20th century and its burgeoning automotive culture make this entry a perfect crossover selection for historical fiction buffs. The lead characters—chapters alternate between the two narrators—have a checkered and violent past that Johnson fills in nicely for new readers. Recommend for Stefanie Pintoff and Caleb Carr devotees."
Publishers Weekly
Starred Review!
"Set in 1912, Johnson’s excellent third mystery featuring auto mechanic Will Anderson (after 2011’s Motor City Shakedown) effectively employs parallel first-person narratives to advance an investigation into a creepy murder. Elizabeth Hume, an affluent woman with some skeletons in her closet, gets a late-night phone call that sends her and more-than-friend Will racing to Eloise Hospital, a sinister insane asylum in Wayne County, Mich. The anonymous caller has claimed that an inmate there, Robert Clarke, who’s a cousin of Elizabeth, has murdered a fellow patient and is threatening suicide. Elizabeth deftly defuses the situation when she arrives, but can’t persuade those in charge of Robert’s innocence. To clear his name, Elizabeth and Will both go undercover at the hospital—she as a volunteer, he as an amnesiac admitted for treatment. The authorities discount reports of other victims and that “the Opera Ghost” (aka “the Phantom”) was responsible. Johnson makes the most of the spooky setting."
"Johnson’s spooky third series entry (after Motor City Shakedown) ensures its place among hot new historicals.His unique take on Detroit in the early 20th century and its burgeoning automotive culture make this entry a perfect crossover selection for historical fiction buffs. The lead characters—chapters alternate between the two narrators—have a checkered and violent past that Johnson fills in nicely for new readers. Recommend for Stefanie Pintoff and Caleb Carr devotees."
Publishers Weekly
Starred Review!
"Set in 1912, Johnson’s excellent third mystery featuring auto mechanic Will Anderson (after 2011’s Motor City Shakedown) effectively employs parallel first-person narratives to advance an investigation into a creepy murder. Elizabeth Hume, an affluent woman with some skeletons in her closet, gets a late-night phone call that sends her and more-than-friend Will racing to Eloise Hospital, a sinister insane asylum in Wayne County, Mich. The anonymous caller has claimed that an inmate there, Robert Clarke, who’s a cousin of Elizabeth, has murdered a fellow patient and is threatening suicide. Elizabeth deftly defuses the situation when she arrives, but can’t persuade those in charge of Robert’s innocence. To clear his name, Elizabeth and Will both go undercover at the hospital—she as a volunteer, he as an amnesiac admitted for treatment. The authorities discount reports of other victims and that “the Opera Ghost” (aka “the Phantom”) was responsible. Johnson makes the most of the spooky setting."
Booklist
"Johnson’s third chronicle of early-1900s Detroit (Motor City Shakedown, 2011, etc.) provides a mystery with suspects aplenty and a scary portrait of life in an insane asylum. Building on his two previous titles set in the early 1900s (The Detroit Electric Scheme, 2010, and Motor City Shakedown, 2011), Johnson’s latest suspense novel finds maimed Will Anderson and his lover and former opiate addict, Elizabeth Hume, facing their personal nightmares as they track a strangler known as the Phantom.
The trail leads to Eloise Hospital, an asylum for the insane, the tubercular, and the inconvenient, where Elizabeth’s cousin, Robert, is a patient. After Robert is falsely accused of the Phantom’s latest murder, Will and Elizabeth hatch an elaborate plan to infiltrate the asylum, nab the Phantom, and release Robert from the “Hole” (solitary confinement). While exposing his characters to sadistic doctors, violent orderlies, and chaotic, frightening madness, Johnson ratchets up the tension as the killer repeatedly eludes capture.
The Phantom’s unmasking is such a shock that readers will wonder if Elizabeth and Will can ever recover. As suspenseful and twisted as Lehane’s Shutter Island (2003) and Lavalle’s The Devil in Silver (2012), this taut historical thriller is a definite winner."
Kirkus Reviews
"A young man risks his life for the woman he loves.
"Will Anderson and Elizabeth Hume have had a rocky romance. Certainly no one in the wealthy families they were born into would have predicted the drama of their lives. A drunken Will forced Elizabeth into a sexual encounter, resulting in a pregnancy she aborted. Will himself has been disfigured and fought both mobsters and morphine. Now that his life’s on a more even keel, he’s willing to put himself in danger again to help Elizabeth’s family. Elizabeth’s mother, who suffers from early dementia, is the guardian of her nephew, Robert, who’s been shut up in the Eloise Hospital Insane Asylum for many years. Robert is accused of killing a fellow inmate by bizarre means straight out of The Phantom of the Opera. Certain of Robert’s innocence, both Will and Elizabeth go undercover in the hospital, Elizabeth as a volunteer, Will as an amnesiac patient. They get some help from Detective Riordan, who once suspected Will of murder, but fail to reckon with the power of the hospital’s private police force. Will is soon subjected to inhumane treatment by a staff that’s apparently covering up other murders. When some of the inmates seem more normal than the staff, Will’s decisions about whom to trust could cost him his life."
"Johnson’s third chronicle of early-1900s Detroit (Motor City Shakedown, 2011, etc.) provides a mystery with suspects aplenty and a scary portrait of life in an insane asylum. Building on his two previous titles set in the early 1900s (The Detroit Electric Scheme, 2010, and Motor City Shakedown, 2011), Johnson’s latest suspense novel finds maimed Will Anderson and his lover and former opiate addict, Elizabeth Hume, facing their personal nightmares as they track a strangler known as the Phantom.
The trail leads to Eloise Hospital, an asylum for the insane, the tubercular, and the inconvenient, where Elizabeth’s cousin, Robert, is a patient. After Robert is falsely accused of the Phantom’s latest murder, Will and Elizabeth hatch an elaborate plan to infiltrate the asylum, nab the Phantom, and release Robert from the “Hole” (solitary confinement). While exposing his characters to sadistic doctors, violent orderlies, and chaotic, frightening madness, Johnson ratchets up the tension as the killer repeatedly eludes capture.
The Phantom’s unmasking is such a shock that readers will wonder if Elizabeth and Will can ever recover. As suspenseful and twisted as Lehane’s Shutter Island (2003) and Lavalle’s The Devil in Silver (2012), this taut historical thriller is a definite winner."
Kirkus Reviews
"A young man risks his life for the woman he loves.
"Will Anderson and Elizabeth Hume have had a rocky romance. Certainly no one in the wealthy families they were born into would have predicted the drama of their lives. A drunken Will forced Elizabeth into a sexual encounter, resulting in a pregnancy she aborted. Will himself has been disfigured and fought both mobsters and morphine. Now that his life’s on a more even keel, he’s willing to put himself in danger again to help Elizabeth’s family. Elizabeth’s mother, who suffers from early dementia, is the guardian of her nephew, Robert, who’s been shut up in the Eloise Hospital Insane Asylum for many years. Robert is accused of killing a fellow inmate by bizarre means straight out of The Phantom of the Opera. Certain of Robert’s innocence, both Will and Elizabeth go undercover in the hospital, Elizabeth as a volunteer, Will as an amnesiac patient. They get some help from Detective Riordan, who once suspected Will of murder, but fail to reckon with the power of the hospital’s private police force. Will is soon subjected to inhumane treatment by a staff that’s apparently covering up other murders. When some of the inmates seem more normal than the staff, Will’s decisions about whom to trust could cost him his life."
The Detroit News
"Readers who like Caleb Carr-style historical mysteries only have a few weeks to wait for Michigan author D.E. Johnson's ("The Detroit Electric Scheme) latest, "Detroit Breakdown: A Mystery" (Minotaur Books), out in September. Set in Detroit in 1912, the mystery involves a series of "opera ghost" murders (the Phantom of the Opera figures heavily) at the Eloise Hospital, Wayne County's insane asylum. One such murder involves the cousin of a young Detroiter, Elizabeth Hume, whose fiance, Will, has himself committed to Eloise in order to investigate. Will is already mixed up with some gangsters by the name of Bernstein, and other historic figures are in the mix — Edsel Ford makes a brief appearance, giving Will a reference."
"Readers who like Caleb Carr-style historical mysteries only have a few weeks to wait for Michigan author D.E. Johnson's ("The Detroit Electric Scheme) latest, "Detroit Breakdown: A Mystery" (Minotaur Books), out in September. Set in Detroit in 1912, the mystery involves a series of "opera ghost" murders (the Phantom of the Opera figures heavily) at the Eloise Hospital, Wayne County's insane asylum. One such murder involves the cousin of a young Detroiter, Elizabeth Hume, whose fiance, Will, has himself committed to Eloise in order to investigate. Will is already mixed up with some gangsters by the name of Bernstein, and other historic figures are in the mix — Edsel Ford makes a brief appearance, giving Will a reference."
Mystery Gazette
""In 1912 in the Detroit area, the caller informs Elizabeth Hume that her cousin Robert Clarke, a lifelong resident of the Eloise Insane Asylum is suspected of murdering another patient. Elizabeth tries to speak with her cousin, but is told no since Robbie is being kept in solitary confinement as this is the fourth person murdered by the Phantom using the “Punjab lasso”.
"She asks her friend P. I Will Anderson to help. Elizabeth volunteers at the facility in order to prove her Robbie is innocent. Will pretends to suffer from amnesia so he is committed as a patient at Eloise Hospital. As the two along with Police Detective Riordan investigate the serial killings, Will learns what it is like to be a helpless patient with no champion to protect him from the abuse and abasement of the staff.
"With a reminder of the need for vigilance to protect those most helpless (think of Willowbrook in the 1960s), Detroit Breakdown is a powerful dark historical noir. Fast-paced from the moment Will enters the asylum, readers will be shocked by the treatment he receives. The serial killer inquiry is superb, but it is the conditions at the Eloise Insane Asylum that grips the audience as D.E. Johnson provides another superb Anderson Motor City Shakedown (see Anderson Electric Car)."
Gumshoe Review
"D.E. Johnson's Detroit Breakdown is his best novel yet in the mystery series chronicling the adventures of Will Anderson, heir to Detroit Electric, the prominent manufacturer of electric automobiles....Detroit Breakdown is highly recommended for fans of D.E. Johnson and fans of historical mysteries, especially ones based on classic horror literature such as Gaston Leroux’s The Phantom of the Opera. I will definitely be reading the next installment of Johnson’s wonderful series; if I miss it, I'll be the one suffering a breakdown."
The Witching Hour
"Detroit Breakdown does a wonderful job of entertaining. I certainly found it a rather delightful read, and I would encourage fans of mystery and suspense to look into this book. The subtle historical nuances that D.E. Johnson has included in his story add an element of fun as the reader is carried on a journey of mystery and intrigue in early 20th century Detroit. Read this book. You won’t be disappointed."
Shelf Awareness
"Johnson brings early 20th-century Detroit vibrantly to life with his descriptions of the terrible traffic, fashions of the era and Eloise's medical treatments. There are frequent references to Will and Elizabeth's earlier adventures (in The Detroit Electric Scheme and Motor City Shakedown); but this story can be fully enjoyed independently of the other two. Fans of historical mysteries and turn-of-the-century Americana will love Detroit Breakdown."
Author Exposure
"From every twist and turn to every breath-taking moment, the reader will be playing detective. Detroit Breakdown (September 2012) is a heart-pounding read and a true page-turner. The author has such a good grip on the reader that you actually see yourself as a character in the book. This book is perfect for those who love a great mystery with a pinch of scare. Detroit Breakdown is one great roller-coaster thrill ride."
Criminal Element
"In Detroit Breakdown, which like D.E. Johnson’s earlier books is set in the Detroit of the early 1910s, the author doesn’t actually describe the thriving city so much as casually place the reader in the midst of Gilded Age mansions and wealth wrung from new industry....I was impressed, as I frequently am by well-written noir tales, at the sense of inevitability that pushes the book to its conclusion. I believe I know where it’s headed, or at least have a pretty good idea, but rather than stripping the story of its suspense, my dread of that conclusion merely adds to the tension."
Fiction Addict
"A noir novel that not only gives a historical snapshot of Detroit but also is told in the style of writing of the time, Detroit Breakdown, is a very interesting and well told story that will keep the reader guessing until the end."
Book Pleasures
"Detroit, 1912; horse drawn carriages are being replaced by electric or petrol driven vehicles and women’s suffrage can't come fast enough. A golden period before the ghastliness of the Great War put an end to the hopes and dreams of a generation of young men, it’s the year chosen by D.E. Johnson as a backdrop to his latest mystery, Detroit Breakdown....
The end is a cracker – Will races through tunnels under Eloise, almost drowning as the tunnels fill with water, only to come face to face with the Phantom. Is there a happy ending? Does the Phantom get what’s coming to him? You will have to read Detroit Breakdown to find out. The whole family, teens to grandma, will enjoy this well written, exciting and hugely entertaining mystery."
The Witching Hour
"D.E. Johnson’s Detroit Breakdown is a mystery and suspense novel set in Detroit’s most infamous insane asylum– Eloise. The story, the third in a series of stand-alone novels, takes place in 1912 and plays heavily upon the historical abuse of mental patients as the two main characters– Will Anderson and Elizabeth Hume– try to free Elizabeth’s “cousin” Robert and discover who is killing patients at Eloise in the style of Gaston Leroux’s Phantom of the Opera. The story pays homage to Nellie Bly’s exposé Ten Days in a Madhouse as the pair decide the best way to determine the identity of the “Phantom” killer would be to have Will committed. I thoroughly enjoyed the story both from a historical standpoint and as a book enthusiast.
I’ve read a lot of mystery novels, and I hate being able to predict the ending to most mystery books as a result. I didn’t have that issue here. The story leads the reader not one, but multiple trails of breadcrumbs which keep the reader second-guessing the outcome of the novel. The story had a steady pace that kept the story flowing and made the book a really pleasurable read. I really wanted to know how it would end!
The historical details about Detroit circa 1912 were impressive. As a civil engineer who works in the field of transportation and public works, I especially enjoyed the author’s descriptions of pedestrian traffic in an era when automobiles were fast-replacing horse and carriage. The difficulties associated with pedestrians crossing the street or automobiles making a left turn across a busy street as well as the loudness of travel which made it utterly impossible to carry on a conversation in transit gave the story an element of reality and historical perspective. Many of the descriptions of traffic are spot on for the time period, and they describe some of the issues with transportation that have been resolved by modern design standards both on roadways and in automobiles.
If you’re not into cars but still enjoy history, the author has done his homework with respect to the Detroit area and he has thoroughly researched Eloise. The author does admit to taking some artistic liberties with the configuration of buildings at Eloise in order to facilitate his story– but ultimately, the descriptions of the buildings, the layout of the grounds, the inclusion of the tubercular sanatorium, and other details bring the backdrop of the asylum to life. That’s not to say the book is chalk full of detail after boring detail– the magic of this book is in the subtle way these details are presented and how the author uses them to enhance his story and bring the characters and setting to life.
I had been asked to read the book because of my review of Ten Days in a Madhouse. Being familiar with this serious but humorous exposé by Nellie Bly was like being privy to a series of inside jokes (or Easter Eggs) left by the author. There were three places where the author borrowed somewhat liberally from Bly’s “Madhouse” and left me grinning with recognition. The first was on page 48 when Will decides to act looney in order to get committed to Eloise. The second begins on page 72 and goes on for several pages. The series of dialogue contained in these pages borrows heavily from Bly– but I had to laugh at the comments made by Will saying he’d never been to Detroit, but was from Cuba because that was the same ruse used by Nellie Bly. Will also has the same sense of trepidation as described by Bly, both when Will is afraid of being recognized in the courtroom and when he is being examined by a medical professional touted as an “insanity expert”. The third instance, and possibly my favorite because of it’s subtlety, is found on page 89 when “A dozen women in nightshirts were shambling along a path on the side of the building, walking behind an orderly like a row of baby ducks following their mother.” This scene, provides a different perspective of the self-same scene in “Madhouse”. Bly’s was written from the perspective of a women in the shambling group while Will observes the same scene from an entirely different perspective. I felt this was a unique way to give Bly’s story a nod and I felt that it really brought the two stories together.
All-in-all, Detroit Breakdown does a wonderful job of entertaining. I certainly found it a rather delightful read, and I would encourage fans of mystery and suspense to look into this book. The subtle historical nuances that D.E. Johnson has included in his story add an element of fun as the reader is carried on a journey of mystery and intrigue in early 20th century Detroit. Read this book. You won’t be disappointed."
Author Exposure
"From every twist and turn to every breath-taking moment, the reader will be playing detective. Detroit Breakdown (September 2012) is a heart-pounding read and a true page-turner. The author has such a good grip on the reader that you actually see yourself as a character in the book.
This book is perfect for those who love a great mystery with a pinch of scare. Detroit Breakdown is one great roller-coaster thrill ride."
Bill Crider's Pop Culture
"Detroit Breakdown is a historical mystery set exactly 100 years in our past. The city is Detroit, naturally, but a big portion of the novel is set in Eloise, a sanitarium or, less politely, an insane asylum. Inside the asylum there's a serial killer who's patterning the murders on those in The Phantom of the Opera.
The story is told in alternating first-person sections by Will Anderson and Elizabeth Hume, who have considerable history from the first two volumes of this series. Don't worry if you haven't read the others. I hadn't, and I found that history adroitly filled in as the novel progressed.
Elizabeth has a special interest in stopping the murders because one of the inmates at Eloise is her brother. Will comes up with the idea of having himself committed to the sanitarium to investigate from the inside. As you probably know, that never seems to work out so well.
The horrors of the asylum are depicted very well, and some of the "cures" Will is subjected to are frightening. Elizabeth turns out to be as kick-ass as you could hope for, and Detroit Breakdown turns out to be a fast-moving and entertaining book."
""In 1912 in the Detroit area, the caller informs Elizabeth Hume that her cousin Robert Clarke, a lifelong resident of the Eloise Insane Asylum is suspected of murdering another patient. Elizabeth tries to speak with her cousin, but is told no since Robbie is being kept in solitary confinement as this is the fourth person murdered by the Phantom using the “Punjab lasso”.
"She asks her friend P. I Will Anderson to help. Elizabeth volunteers at the facility in order to prove her Robbie is innocent. Will pretends to suffer from amnesia so he is committed as a patient at Eloise Hospital. As the two along with Police Detective Riordan investigate the serial killings, Will learns what it is like to be a helpless patient with no champion to protect him from the abuse and abasement of the staff.
"With a reminder of the need for vigilance to protect those most helpless (think of Willowbrook in the 1960s), Detroit Breakdown is a powerful dark historical noir. Fast-paced from the moment Will enters the asylum, readers will be shocked by the treatment he receives. The serial killer inquiry is superb, but it is the conditions at the Eloise Insane Asylum that grips the audience as D.E. Johnson provides another superb Anderson Motor City Shakedown (see Anderson Electric Car)."
Gumshoe Review
"D.E. Johnson's Detroit Breakdown is his best novel yet in the mystery series chronicling the adventures of Will Anderson, heir to Detroit Electric, the prominent manufacturer of electric automobiles....Detroit Breakdown is highly recommended for fans of D.E. Johnson and fans of historical mysteries, especially ones based on classic horror literature such as Gaston Leroux’s The Phantom of the Opera. I will definitely be reading the next installment of Johnson’s wonderful series; if I miss it, I'll be the one suffering a breakdown."
The Witching Hour
"Detroit Breakdown does a wonderful job of entertaining. I certainly found it a rather delightful read, and I would encourage fans of mystery and suspense to look into this book. The subtle historical nuances that D.E. Johnson has included in his story add an element of fun as the reader is carried on a journey of mystery and intrigue in early 20th century Detroit. Read this book. You won’t be disappointed."
Shelf Awareness
"Johnson brings early 20th-century Detroit vibrantly to life with his descriptions of the terrible traffic, fashions of the era and Eloise's medical treatments. There are frequent references to Will and Elizabeth's earlier adventures (in The Detroit Electric Scheme and Motor City Shakedown); but this story can be fully enjoyed independently of the other two. Fans of historical mysteries and turn-of-the-century Americana will love Detroit Breakdown."
Author Exposure
"From every twist and turn to every breath-taking moment, the reader will be playing detective. Detroit Breakdown (September 2012) is a heart-pounding read and a true page-turner. The author has such a good grip on the reader that you actually see yourself as a character in the book. This book is perfect for those who love a great mystery with a pinch of scare. Detroit Breakdown is one great roller-coaster thrill ride."
Criminal Element
"In Detroit Breakdown, which like D.E. Johnson’s earlier books is set in the Detroit of the early 1910s, the author doesn’t actually describe the thriving city so much as casually place the reader in the midst of Gilded Age mansions and wealth wrung from new industry....I was impressed, as I frequently am by well-written noir tales, at the sense of inevitability that pushes the book to its conclusion. I believe I know where it’s headed, or at least have a pretty good idea, but rather than stripping the story of its suspense, my dread of that conclusion merely adds to the tension."
Fiction Addict
"A noir novel that not only gives a historical snapshot of Detroit but also is told in the style of writing of the time, Detroit Breakdown, is a very interesting and well told story that will keep the reader guessing until the end."
Book Pleasures
"Detroit, 1912; horse drawn carriages are being replaced by electric or petrol driven vehicles and women’s suffrage can't come fast enough. A golden period before the ghastliness of the Great War put an end to the hopes and dreams of a generation of young men, it’s the year chosen by D.E. Johnson as a backdrop to his latest mystery, Detroit Breakdown....
The end is a cracker – Will races through tunnels under Eloise, almost drowning as the tunnels fill with water, only to come face to face with the Phantom. Is there a happy ending? Does the Phantom get what’s coming to him? You will have to read Detroit Breakdown to find out. The whole family, teens to grandma, will enjoy this well written, exciting and hugely entertaining mystery."
The Witching Hour
"D.E. Johnson’s Detroit Breakdown is a mystery and suspense novel set in Detroit’s most infamous insane asylum– Eloise. The story, the third in a series of stand-alone novels, takes place in 1912 and plays heavily upon the historical abuse of mental patients as the two main characters– Will Anderson and Elizabeth Hume– try to free Elizabeth’s “cousin” Robert and discover who is killing patients at Eloise in the style of Gaston Leroux’s Phantom of the Opera. The story pays homage to Nellie Bly’s exposé Ten Days in a Madhouse as the pair decide the best way to determine the identity of the “Phantom” killer would be to have Will committed. I thoroughly enjoyed the story both from a historical standpoint and as a book enthusiast.
I’ve read a lot of mystery novels, and I hate being able to predict the ending to most mystery books as a result. I didn’t have that issue here. The story leads the reader not one, but multiple trails of breadcrumbs which keep the reader second-guessing the outcome of the novel. The story had a steady pace that kept the story flowing and made the book a really pleasurable read. I really wanted to know how it would end!
The historical details about Detroit circa 1912 were impressive. As a civil engineer who works in the field of transportation and public works, I especially enjoyed the author’s descriptions of pedestrian traffic in an era when automobiles were fast-replacing horse and carriage. The difficulties associated with pedestrians crossing the street or automobiles making a left turn across a busy street as well as the loudness of travel which made it utterly impossible to carry on a conversation in transit gave the story an element of reality and historical perspective. Many of the descriptions of traffic are spot on for the time period, and they describe some of the issues with transportation that have been resolved by modern design standards both on roadways and in automobiles.
If you’re not into cars but still enjoy history, the author has done his homework with respect to the Detroit area and he has thoroughly researched Eloise. The author does admit to taking some artistic liberties with the configuration of buildings at Eloise in order to facilitate his story– but ultimately, the descriptions of the buildings, the layout of the grounds, the inclusion of the tubercular sanatorium, and other details bring the backdrop of the asylum to life. That’s not to say the book is chalk full of detail after boring detail– the magic of this book is in the subtle way these details are presented and how the author uses them to enhance his story and bring the characters and setting to life.
I had been asked to read the book because of my review of Ten Days in a Madhouse. Being familiar with this serious but humorous exposé by Nellie Bly was like being privy to a series of inside jokes (or Easter Eggs) left by the author. There were three places where the author borrowed somewhat liberally from Bly’s “Madhouse” and left me grinning with recognition. The first was on page 48 when Will decides to act looney in order to get committed to Eloise. The second begins on page 72 and goes on for several pages. The series of dialogue contained in these pages borrows heavily from Bly– but I had to laugh at the comments made by Will saying he’d never been to Detroit, but was from Cuba because that was the same ruse used by Nellie Bly. Will also has the same sense of trepidation as described by Bly, both when Will is afraid of being recognized in the courtroom and when he is being examined by a medical professional touted as an “insanity expert”. The third instance, and possibly my favorite because of it’s subtlety, is found on page 89 when “A dozen women in nightshirts were shambling along a path on the side of the building, walking behind an orderly like a row of baby ducks following their mother.” This scene, provides a different perspective of the self-same scene in “Madhouse”. Bly’s was written from the perspective of a women in the shambling group while Will observes the same scene from an entirely different perspective. I felt this was a unique way to give Bly’s story a nod and I felt that it really brought the two stories together.
All-in-all, Detroit Breakdown does a wonderful job of entertaining. I certainly found it a rather delightful read, and I would encourage fans of mystery and suspense to look into this book. The subtle historical nuances that D.E. Johnson has included in his story add an element of fun as the reader is carried on a journey of mystery and intrigue in early 20th century Detroit. Read this book. You won’t be disappointed."
Author Exposure
"From every twist and turn to every breath-taking moment, the reader will be playing detective. Detroit Breakdown (September 2012) is a heart-pounding read and a true page-turner. The author has such a good grip on the reader that you actually see yourself as a character in the book.
This book is perfect for those who love a great mystery with a pinch of scare. Detroit Breakdown is one great roller-coaster thrill ride."
Bill Crider's Pop Culture
"Detroit Breakdown is a historical mystery set exactly 100 years in our past. The city is Detroit, naturally, but a big portion of the novel is set in Eloise, a sanitarium or, less politely, an insane asylum. Inside the asylum there's a serial killer who's patterning the murders on those in The Phantom of the Opera.
The story is told in alternating first-person sections by Will Anderson and Elizabeth Hume, who have considerable history from the first two volumes of this series. Don't worry if you haven't read the others. I hadn't, and I found that history adroitly filled in as the novel progressed.
Elizabeth has a special interest in stopping the murders because one of the inmates at Eloise is her brother. Will comes up with the idea of having himself committed to the sanitarium to investigate from the inside. As you probably know, that never seems to work out so well.
The horrors of the asylum are depicted very well, and some of the "cures" Will is subjected to are frightening. Elizabeth turns out to be as kick-ass as you could hope for, and Detroit Breakdown turns out to be a fast-moving and entertaining book."