Kinds of Love, Kinds of Death is the first of five Mitch Tobin mystery novels by Tucker Coe aka Donald E. Westlake. Westlake is best known for his comic caper novels featuring Dortmunder or his darker heist novels featuring Parker. Here, under the pseudonym Tucker Coe, Westlake takes on the whodunit with great success.
Mitch Tobin is an ex-cop who was tossed off the police force under dark circumstances. He is not doing much with his life. He is contacted by mobster Ernie Rombeck. Rombeck’s mistress has been killed and some loot is missing. Rombeck wants Tobin to find out who killed his mistress before the cops do.
Things get interesting because Tobin thinks this was an inside job. The reader gets to see how the mob works from the inside, especially those perfectly legal businesses run by people who used to be crooked.
Kinds of Love, Kinds of Hate by Tucker Coe and Donald E. Westlake is your standard murder mystery. What makes it stand out is the main character and his innner conflicts as well as the secondary characters.
The reveal is both surprising and excellent. It is also complex and makes perfect sense. Though originally published in 1966, this mystery novel has aged very well.
This whodunit is Donald E. Westlake in fine, fine form.
Kinds of Love, Kinds of Death
Tucker Coe
Donald E. Westlake
A Mitch Tobin Mystery
Originally published 1966
Mysterious Press 2013
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