"IQ" by Jo Ide

A resident of one of LA's toughest neighborhoods uses his blistering intellect to solve the crimes the LAPD ignores. 

East Long Beach. The LAPD is barely keeping up with the neighborhood's high crime rate. Murders go unsolved, lost children unrecovered. But someone from the neighborhood has taken it upon himself to help solve the cases the police can't or won't touch. 

They call him IQ. He's a loner and a high school dropout, his unassuming nature disguising a relentless determination and a fierce intelligence. He charges his clients whatever they can afford, which might be a set of tires or a homemade casserole. To get by, he's forced to take on clients that can pay. 

This time, it's a rap mogul whose life is in danger. As Isaiah investigates, he encounters a vengeful ex-wife, a crew of notorious cutthroats, a monstrous attack dog, and a hit man who even other hit men say is a lunatic. The deeper Isaiah digs, the more far reaching and dangerous the case becomes. ~taken from Netgalley

Well, that was quite a read, and I'm not quite sure what my exact rating is. I guess I will type out this review while I ponder on how many stars to give it. 

 I did really like the main character, Isaiah Quitabe (aka IQ), who lives in a rough L.A. neighborhood and acts like a community detective, of sorts. He is a modern day Sherlock mixed with Shawn Spencer of the tv show Psych, and a little bit of Robin Hood mixed in as well. 

This book is told in third person perspective and jumps back and forth between two times- 2005 and 2013. Really, it's like reading two separate stories. There are times I wished the story from 2005- the "how IQ came to be" was a separate book than the rest of the story from 2013. It was all over the place and confusing. Just as I was getting a good flow reading the main story, I was taken back to a previous time in the character's life. It was so distracting and annoying. There were just too many flashbacks and the back story was too slow to unfold, making it somewhat boring. 

The character dialog is clever and authentic. There is quite a bit of cussing, so if that is something that bothers you, then I would recommend avoiding this book because it is a constant. The scenes and characters are believable and the crime itself was interesting and unique. The urban setting was very interesting and felt authentic to me. It was a change for me to read about gang-ridden war zones and drug dens. I can honestly say the book kept me interested.

Overall, it was a decent read. I think the timelines jumping back and forth were just too much for me. I understand the need to know the back story, but I feel it could have been done without causing so much chaos and without taking away from the main story. I did enjoy the characters, but I think this book just isn't for me. I give it 3 stars.

"IQ" by Joe Ide is set to be released October 18, 2016. If you are looking for a unique, modern-detective, urban- fiction, suspense novel than I recommend pre-ordering it now.  

Thanks to Netgalley and Mulholland Books for allowing me the egalley in exchange for my honest review.

Happy Reading!