Mahu Surfer: A Hawaiian Mystery by Neil Plakcy

Middle-aged straight woman enjoyed this gay mysteryby Auntieknickers

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October 25, 2008: I read this book, not because of the gay theme, but because I am reading a mystery set in every state in the Union, by an author whose work I haven?t read before. I got to Hawaii and, because I?d read some of his posts on an online mystery discussion group, decided to try one of Neil Plakcy?s MAHU series. (Mahu is a, not necessarily complimentary, Hawaiian term for homosexual).

When the book opens, the protagonist, Detective Kimo Kanapa'aka, is reporting for duty at his new assignment within the Honolulu PD. In the previous book (MAHU, which I haven't read yet), he underwent a series of traumatic events, which included his self-acknowledgment that he was gay, being outed on local television, and suspension from duty. He soon learns that his new boss wants him to go undercover immediately, pretending that he has not been reinstated to the force, in order to investigate three surfer shootings on the North Shore of Oahu. Kimo has some trouble with this request as it involves lying to his friends and family, but his love of surfing and police work win out and he accepts the assignment.

Returning to the North Shore, where he had spent time surfing before joining the police, brings back a lot of memories for Kimo. Having only recently come out, he's also testing himself socially and sexually as a gay man. I'm not normally enthralled by sex scenes in mysteries, but the few that take place in MAHU SURFER are useful both for plot reasons and character development. As Kimo searches for a connection among the murdered surfers, he reconnects with the surfing culture and discovers several possible suspects and more than one motive.

I had a few reservations about the ending of the book, which left one promising plot element hanging. But overall this was a very enjoyable read with a wealth of detail about island life and the diverse population of Hawaii. One thing I found particularly refreshing was Kimo's relationship with his family, especially his parents. Too often, even in the mystery genre, parents are presented as (a) toxic monsters, (b) pathetic nonentities who have nothing to talk about with their sleuthing children, or (c) heroic figures impossible to live up to. Kimo's parents are loving and supportive in difficult circumstances, and he obviously loves and respects them. He also has two great friends in Harry and Terri, who each bring their own skills and backgrounds to help him solve the mystery. I hope to see more of them when I read the previous and further adventures of Kimo Kanapa'aka.