The Best-Kept Secret

The Best Kept Sectet was my first Milan Jacovich novel by Les Roberts, and I enjoyed it so much that I am looking forward to reading the other books in the series. The Best Kept Secret is a term that refers to the city of Cleveland. Reggie Parker, a friend of Milan's who is also a principal of the high school that Milan's oldest son Milan, Jr. attended, asks Milan to look into allegations of rape by one of his former students, Jason Crowell, a freshman at Sherman College. The group calling themselves Women's Warriors have posted fliers about Jason being a rapist. The administration at the college believes he is guilty of rape including Dorothy Strassky, the counselor for sexual harassment at Sherman. Strassky calls Jacovich to set up a meeting with him to give him information that she has learned. Before their meeting, Strassky is murdered. Jason Crowell becomes the prime suspect in her murder. Then, a large quantity of heroin is found in the house that Jason lived in, and he is charged with possession with intent to distribute. It becomes apparent to Jacovich that Jason is being framed. Only he and Reggie Parker believe that Jason is innocent. Even Jason's father believes his son is guilty. There are many secrets here: Who was raped? Who are the Women's Warriors? Why has Jason not told Jacovich that he is gay? Who is framing Jason? It is up to Jacovich to answer all these questions. I really like the character of Milan Jacovich. The Best Kept Secret is an excellent novel!

Jason Crowell, a freshman living away at college is accused of rape on campus. The only problem is that he doesn't know who is doing the accusing. One of Jason's former teachers calls on old friend, Private Investigator Milan Jacovich to look into what's going on at Jason's school. It's pretty likely Jason didn't do it. There's something Jason hasn't told too many people about himself! The Best Kept Secret is a thoroughly enjoyable read. Jason is a very believable innocent who is being taken in by something larger on campus, something he doesn't understand. Milan Jacovich, a continuing character in Les Roberts' stories is a strong and even investigator. A good read.

Being a lover of mysteries, I had never heard of Les Roberts until a relative of mine gave me this book. It gripped me from the beginning, introducing Milan Jacovich as not only a good detective but a dedicated friend coming to the aid of someone who once saved his life. As the story progresses and the characters develop, the possibilities of "whodunit" became wider, with the reader never really knowing which character was behind the crimes - yes, the crimes multiplied as the story went on. Once this reader got to the fifth or sixth chapter, putting the book down became difficult. The last hundred pages went very fast as the guilty parties were revealed. This is a good, fast-paced, involving story that I would recommend to anyone who enjoys a good mystery and a central character, who in most ways, has a conscience.

The Best Kept Secret by Les Roberts is a wonderful book. Often I think Les Roberts is the best-kept secret in writing today. The Milan series has been flawless, and The Best Kept Secret is no exception. This book was extremely entertaining and thought provoking. I was captured by the first page and read it in one day. I highly recommend this book and all the rest of the books written by this talented man.

Cleveland private investigator Milan Jacovich owes his life to Dr. Reginald Parker. Strangely it did not occur when the two were grunts in Nam as their paths never crossed in Southeast Asia. Instead, the high school principal rescued the sleuth in an East Cleveland crack house. Milan knows that he owes Reginald so when the educator calls in his chips, the detective responds. A former student, Jason Crowell attends Sherman College located in the western suburbs. An anonymous group, the Women Warriors, accuse Jason of rape, plastering flyers all over the campus. The media is playing the story. Milan agrees to look into the situation and learns some strange facts. No one knows who are the members of the female activist group. The alleged victim has never surfaced. Jason has always been squeaky clean and his sexual preference tends towards males. As the school administration wants to hang Jason as a sexual predator, a related murder occurs in which the freshman serves as the prime suspect. Milan believes the lad is innocent and plans to uncover the identity of the real killer. The Milan Jacovich mysteries remain an entertaining treat as they strip away the image of a burning Lake Erie and a rusted city to provide a tour of the real Cleveland. The latest novel, THE BEST-KEPT SECRET, is an interesting tale as Milan investigates the ugly atmosphere of a nearby campus. The story line seems far-fetched that Jason would come under such a blitz attack based on almost nothing. However, the fact that indiviudals serving hard time have been freed due to DNA testing prove otherwise. Les Roberts has kept fresh his down to earth sleuth in a tale that fans will enjoy.Harriet Klausner