A most interesting read as it describes how life was before cell phones, and the internet, and provides a funny review of how we used to dress. The plot is very good, the story is beautifully written and it brings to our memory tragic events that happened around that time as the death of cult followers. I found it refreshing to read a story where the PI is an ex-convicted inmate who has paid her due to society.
Entertaining!

Bad scene - max Tomlinson

I’m sorry I didn’t get to read this title and so it expired therefore I cannot give an accurate review. Sorry

Set in 1978 San Francisco, this mystery definitely isn't a cozy. The protagonist, Colleen Hayes, spent a decade in jail for fatally stabbing her husband in the neck with a screwdriver. Her estranged daughter is involved with a cult.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

loved the use of a cult leader in a mystery novel, the characters were great and I enjoyed the mystery aspect of the book.

This was an interesting and enjoyable next book in a series by the author. The book had enough mystery and intrigue to keep the reader interested. I would recommend,however, reading the previous books in this series before reading this book.

Bad Scene by Max Tomlinson was a throwback to a time when we all wore bell bottoms and platform shoes. Fun, strange fashion memories aside, this was a thrilling, pulse pounding story about political intrigue, biker gangs, the KKK, and cults. When Colleen (ex-con turned private investigator) hears from her source that a city official is going to be assassinated, then discovers a connection to her missing daughter, the action never stops. There are lots of storylines, but it’s easy to keep up. This is a quick, satisfying read.

An interesting mystery/détective story that keeps one involved. The interpersonal story line was well developed and seemed to end well. Though fictional the re was a comparison to real events. My first book by this author and I would read again.

Great characters and I love that it is set in thr 70s. Hard to remember what it was like before cell phones and the internet. Really enjoyed this . Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

Excitement and suspense as several issues drive Colleen seeks for her daughter, follows a friend killed, dealing with the police, and trying to make money from her PI work. The problems continue to hit more and more and wilder actions. Whether chasing the killers or seeking her daughter from death preacher, the danger stays everywhere.. The character are stereotype, but they enhance the story. This is not a place you can set down with soon happenings. The story is imaginal and what more.

Time travel back to San Francisco 1978, and spend time with Colleen Hayes an ex-con who went to prison for killing an abusive spouse. This third book in the series takes place not longer after Tie Die, the previous book. Colleen is a private Investigator, she gets a tip that a supervisor plans to kill the mayor. Of course, no one believes her. Max Tomlinson does an excellent job weaving a true event in the storyline.

Colleen continues her search for her daughter, Pam, who has joined a cult. Pam has never forgiven her mother for killing her father. Colleen learns that the cult is planning a relocation to South America and races to rescue Pam. This bears a resemblance to Jonestown.

This book can be read as a stand alone, but I recommend reading the books in order to get a better understanding of Colleen Hayes. Max Tomlinson writes vividly of a San Francisco from the past. The city is as much a main character as Colleen. This series gets better with each book. I anxiously await the next book in the series.

Thank you to NetGalley and Oceanview Publishing for an ARC. The review is my own.

I will leave a review on Amazon or B&N on Aug 3rd

Bad Scene is the third book in the Colleen Hayes series written by Max Tomlinson. I hadn't read either of the two previous books in the series. For me this book just didn't grab my imagination, which I look for in a book. I did find it to be well written and action packed, just not a book for me. I still recommend others read the book because I know everyone does not like the same things.

I received a ARC from NetGalley and the publisher, I am under no obligation to leave a favorable review and all opinions expressed here are my own.

Travel back to 1978 San Francisco. The summer of love is long over. The dot com bubble is decades away. It’s a city filled with poverty, drugs and biker gangs. The Rolling Stones have a disco hit, Missing You, for goodness sakes! It is a Bad Scene, man. Baaaad.

Private investigator Colleen gets a tip from a friend that a city supervisor is planning on killing the mayor. The motive is the mayor’s support of a gay rights bill. When the friend gets beaten severely and dumped into a dumpster, Colleen investigates.

Meanwhile, Colleen is also looking for her nineteen-year-old daughter, Pamela. Pamela has never forgiven her mother for killing her father, even though Colleen had paid for her crime in prison. Pamela was last seen with a cult called the Moon Ranch. The Ranch is a suicide cult led by a not-so-benevolent leader, Brother Adem.

It may be hard to believe but the assassination is based on a true crime. It actually jumpstarted Dianne Feinstein’s career. It was also the first use of the “Twinkie defense” that junk food was the real culprit.

Revisiting 1978 was fun. I had forgotten my joy of using the auto-erase key on the IBM Selectric typewriter. And the difficulty of replacing the correction tape. The era’s style and small details are replicated perfectly in this book. Kudos to the author since most books get it at least slightly wrong.

Even if you don’t remember 1978, Bad Scene is an enthralling choice for noir thriller readers. 4 stars!

Thanks to Oceanview Publishing and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Colleen went to prison for killing her husband, who had abused her daughter Pam. Now released, she's been searching for Pam, who wants nothing to do with her. It's 1978 and Colleen has heard that Pam as joined a cult which plans to move to South America. The plot line involving a volcano ready to pop off is unnecessary- the cult would have been enough. That said, Tomlinson has a way of evoking San Francisco during the period (it's almost another character) and of pulling the reader in. I have enjoyed this series for Colleen, who is dynamic and determined, as well as for her various cases. Don't worry- this will be fine as a standalone. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC.

This was well written and a pretty quick read. Although it wasn't really something I generally read, I did find it entertaining and I'd recommend it to others.

I struggled a lot with this book. The characters felt stiff. I had issues with the tone at times. I wasn't drawn into the atmosphere. I was also thrown out of the reading every time a slur was used. However, I did think that the descriptions were well written and the writing flowed well at times.

I would like to thank Oceanview Publishing for providing me with an Arc.

Compelling and suspenseful read. Thoroughly enjoyed the 1970's nostalgia, as well as the main character, Colleen. I often find it tedious when main characters are repeatedly told by secondary characters how clever, tough, brave, etc they are, and it was so refreshing to have a character simply written that way. Colleen's competence came through in her actions and interactions, not as dialogue. She was written as a smart, confident woman without any dependence upon cliche.

The Jonestown-like cult and the Milk and Moscone murders made for an absorbing story. The many '70s pop culture references were a lot of fun. I had not read the previous books in this series, but there was enough back story included that I had no problem making the connections and the story felt complete, though perhaps a bit rushed toward the end. Overall, I really enjoyed it and will be reading the first books in the series soon as Colleen is my new favorite PI.

Thanks to NetGalley for the copy. This is the second book of the series that I’ve read.

The story mixes truth with fiction in late-70s San Francisco. A private detective, searching for her wayward 20-year old daughter, gets mixed up with biker gangs, suicide cults, and dirty cops along the way. The author weaves the search in with the Moscone-Milk murders and a Jonestown-like cult, and makes for quite an intriguing story. The many pop-cultural references from 1978 are campy at times, but remind you of the era in which the story is set.

Interested to see where the next book in the series goes.

Cross-posted to Goodreads.

Bad Scene is an interesting take on the tragedies of November, 1978, in San Francisco. The murders of the mayor and a supervisor were shocking, but in this novel our protagonist Collen had informed the police ahead of the murders. Police politics are part of the story, but mostly it is Collen, out of prison and running a small PI practice as she searches for her daughter, who had joined a cult similar to the Jonestown cult that ended in tragedy. Seeing all of this from the perspective of what might normally be considered a minor player makes the novel that much more interesting. Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

Another enjoyable addition to Max Tomlinson's "Coleen Hayes" series. Set in San Francisco in the summer of 1978, the author notes it was a turbulent time with the Jim Jones "koolaid" suicides and the assassination of the Mayor Moscone and Superintendent Milk. These events are mirrored a bit in the plot line as Coleen follows up on an informant's lead about a conspiracy to assassinate the Mayor, which leads her to investigating the KKK and a biker gang, all while searching for her estranged daughter. The action makes for a quick read.

Unfortunately I did not finish this book. It all looked really interesting. I just couldn’t get into it. It has potential. Just not for me.