Father Complex

4.5

This is a Hazard-centric outing. As the tittle suggests we continue to unravel the knotty skien that is parenthood, dealing pretty exclusively with fathers. Almost every character from murder victims to possible murderers, from Colt to Hazard, are coping (mostly not well) with that oft fraught relationship.

About the mystery itself there isn't much to say and the dead are of no great loss to anyone. One of the twists was clear to me from the get go but I wasn't mad about it. The case is a canvass for the author to continue his exploration of Wahredua politics (which IMO is a stand-in for current America) and the ever maturing relationship between John-Henry & Emery. I like that he isn't heavy handed, he allows even the most villainous of villains moments of grace and humanity and there are some interesting, but not farfetched developments among some of the recurring cast of characters.

Becoming Colt's father makes Hazard to revisit/reevaluate his thoughts & feelings about his own father. It's progress even if it's at tortoise speed. Life has its own pace. Meanwhile we have Colt who's the walking, talking stereotype of a teenager, emotions like a pinball machine. My first thoughts were:
*1Super glad to not be regularly around teenagers
*2I wouldn't never have gotten away with that behavior
*3how does Hazard love this virtual stranger so much in such a short time?
*4has Colten forgotten what/who Danny Lee is?

and then I remembered what it was like to be in that limbo age where you're not one thing or another, that those initial formative years mark us indelibly whether we admit it or not, like it or not, logic has no sway. Fifty year-olds are still talking about their parents when they go to therapy. As for Hazard's love, who knows? Maybe Colt, who looks so much like him (and not just physically) is a chance to save the boy he once was and all the boys like himself who've been ill used by a cruel world.

Overall I liked how we get to see the MC growing and learning from their mistakes and how they're becoming a true family. Beautiful