Jack Taylor Cases: Altar of Angels - Hardcover

It's an old saying that every story's got at least two sides. Usually opposite sides, sure, but it doesn't mean one's got to be good as an angel or evil as a demon. The line that separates them can be as thin as a two-dollar steak in a New Jersey diner. I've got a habit of crossing lines, but it comes at a cost. I've got one dame madder at me than a hatter running out of tea. And another... well, we lost big when we lost her. Our Christmas Spirit is dead. And because of me, we're stuck watching the eclipse countdown to the end, where the line between life and afterlife fades faster than the details of a dream after the ring of an alarm clock. A line I was forced to watch the Grim Reaper dance on.

Stranded on a beach off Oracle Island, teen detective Jack watches the sun and moon inch closer together as the voice of an annoying private eye only he can hear continues to narrate his movements. Cold-case clues from Old Man Winter and riddles from a fortune teller will need to be solved and deciphered while he journeys through blended worlds. His fateful trek will uncover the origins of Halloween's Great Pumpkin, the wishes of an unlucky genie's jinx, and a family tree that may unearth his rock bottom. Unintentionally, he'll discover ways to dig himself into deeper holes, but as he investigates, his search for a little light may reveal a different path. Sitting beside a freshly dug grave, he wonders if redemption is enough to keep him moving forward.

In this fifth and final case of this holiday who-done-it-style mystery series, young spirited detective Jack will lead a demonic ex-Christmas symbol, an imaginary friend allergic to sunlight, and the journalist he betrayed on a mad march across the afterlife. Equipped with his gifted flashlight in a race to find an ancient altar, he will search for the one who can stand against Father Time. Will it be enough, or must he accept burying more loved ones like his father?