When The Tik-Tik Sings by Doug Lamoreux

There are book titles that when you see them you are not sure what you are going to get when you start to read. I have to say that the book, “When The Tik-Tik Sings”, is just such a title. I was thinking is this about some sort of demented coo-coo clock? There’s a chance that Tik-Tik could be a title of a singer or a band. I had no idea what I was getting into when I first saw the title. Author Doug Lamoreux has written some great books so I tossed away my guesses on potential subject and began to read.

The book opens with veteran police woman, Erin, talking her morning run. As she runs through the area and near the peak of Eagle Point Park she is startled by a big black shape. The shape jumps out and goes up scaring the officer so that she falls and lands rather undignified in the wet grass. Whatever the thing was she had heard this odd noise, “tik-tik, tik-tik, tik…” just before it appeared. She was rightfully nervous after being startled and her imagination start to run wild but she was able to re-focus and finish her run.

It’s not long after the run that she is in her patrol car and on her way to work. It’s here that she comes across a speeding car and a very reckless driver in an expensive sports car. She does her job and begins pursuit of the driver, and it’s not long before the chase ends. It’s at the moment that she is about to confront this driver that something unexpected happens. There is a loud scream and it’s followed not long after by an explosion.

The book takes off from this point like the big bang that startled many in this small tourist town in Iowa near the Mississippi River. The next few chapters are filled with action as we are introduced to firefighters and other local police. There are mixes of great sarcastic comments from one character to another. Firefighters Ben and Nestor are some of those characters that fill the reader with some of that great laughter that will be found as the fight those in authority.

Those upcoming chapters also will introduce everyone to what is going to become the scourge of the local police. This being multiple murders that make no real sense. A woman’s body found way up in the air on the top of an old theater. There will be a common thread for most of the murders, but to find out what those are you must read the book.

There is another item in the book I found fascinating and even spoke to some I know who live in the Philippines about. The fact is that Filipino myth and lore will play a large part of what is happening within the pages of the book. Those who live in the country will tell you that the country has many myths and stories and some of those come to live within the pages of the book. In my checks it is clear that author Doug Lamoreux did his homework as he is spot on with how he uses that lore within the book.

When The Tik-Tik Sings has nothing to do with a clock as I originally thought could be possible. The part that a bird may be involved is “somewhat” right but it wasn’t something I was thinking about. The book has non-stop turns of action and with the point of view form used within the pages it is hard to put down. There is a lot of violence but the great thing is that Lamoreux does not do anything to gratuitous. The violence fits the situation and the descriptions do make the imagination work a little as you read. The book will make fans of mystery, suspense and thrillers very happy and is worth the read and is published by Creativia Publishing.