View source for Charlesgate Confidential by Scott Von Doviak

{{infobox1
|title=Charlesgate Confidential
|author=Scott Von Doviak
|reviewer= Megan Kenny
|genre=Crime
|summary= ''Charlesgate Confidential'' takes the reader on a journey through the streets of Boston from 1946 to 2014. Inspired by a real case, art theft, murder and mystery abound making this a must-read for those amongst us who love an unsolved crime. 
|rating=3
|buy=Maybe
|borrow=Yes
|pages=384
|publisher=Hard Case Crime
|date=September 2018
|isbn=978-1785657177
|cover=1785657178
|aznuk=1785657178
|aznus=1785657178
}}
In 1946 a gang of criminals pull off an audacious art heist, making off with priceless works of art from a Boston Museum. These missing art works are never found. In 1988, a student finds himself caught up in the mystery of the missing art and hot on the trail of the multi-million-dollar reward. In 2014, the art is still missing and now dead bodies are turning up at the eponymous Charlesgate, filled with alumni celebrating their 25th reunion. As the body count rises, will we discover the truth behind the art theft decades earlier?

As a lover of Hard Case Crime, I am disappointed that I did not enjoy ''Charlesgate Confidential'' as much as their other publications. This was in part due to the reliance on racist and sexist language in much of the dialogue in chapters from 1946 and 1988. Some may see this as providing a realistic context, evoking the spirit of the era, but for me it was simply unpleasant and not necessary in a contemporary work of fiction. Whilst this dampened my enthusiasm for ''Charlesgate Confidential'', it is still an interesting addition to the Hard Case Crime bookshelf and would be ideal for those readers who are interested in the murky world of art theft.
 
On a more positive note, it is interesting to see how Von Doviak has taken an unsolved crime and used it as a springboard to create a story filled with plot twists, intrigue and mystery. Von Doviak has also evoked a sense of place, drawing on a number of cultural references to root the reader firmly in Boston. The characters here are detailed and the story moves at a fast enough pace to keep the reader engaged and Von Doviak manages to maintain a sense of order even when moving from the forties to the eighties to the present and back again. 

For those of you interested in reading more from Hard Case Crime, you could try [[The Knife Slipped by Erle Stanley Gardner]] or [[So Many Doors by Oakley Hall]].

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[[Category:Crime (Historical)]]