Head Cases by John McMahon - Book Review

Series: PAR Unit #1

Publication Date: 28th Jan 2025

Genre: Police Procedural, FBI Thriller  

3.7 Stars 

One Liner: Entertaining but don’t think too much about it 

FBI Agent Gardner Camden is an analytical genius and one of the four super-talented agents at the PAR (Patterns and Recognition) unit. Of course, this comes at the cost of human emotions, something he fails to achieve even with his seven-year-old daughter. 

When the DNA of a new victim reveals he was recorded dead seven years ago, Gardner is called to investigate the case (along with his team). A second death occurs, starting a pattern they need to break to stop the killer from committing more murders. 

However, things are complicated, and the killer knows a lot more about PAR and its members than they do. Can Gardner and his team solve it before their lives are in danger? 

The story comes in Gardner’s first-person POV. 

My Thoughts: 

The premise screams high competence coupled with wonder kid-type talent which made me want to read the book. The 4-star reviews by friends sealed my decision. Despite the flaws, I don’t regret reading it. In fact, I want the series to be longer than two books (with the hope that the flaws get addressed). 

The initial 30% is slow despite starting with the murder. We also get details about the team members and teeny backstories. The foundation is laid, so makes sense that the pacing dips. The second half was pretty fast for me. It sustained the momentum with reveals and twists. Is some of it a bit too convenient? Yeah, it is but still fun. 

Each member of the team has a distinct ability and a reason for being in PAR, and the reasons aren’t always good. While this adds some layers to the characters, there isn’t enough to turn them into strong personalities. Gardner gets better profiling since he is the MC and the voice of the book. His personal life is rather interesting, something similar yet different to what we tend to see in the genre. 

The investigative part was cool, especially since we have these competent fellas working on the same. They are still human - make mistakes, miss clues, and even go in circles. But hey, you can notice they are good at what they do. 

The MC likes to share random insights and facts. Since this doesn’t get excessive, I liked how it added to his personality. Don’t bother about connecting with him or others. It’s not likely that we will. Think of it as a TV show (Criminal Minds maybe) in book form. 

The MC’s mother has a short yet important role. I hope she will be featured in the next book too. His daughter is certainly interesting but we don’t see enough to get an idea. Of course, she’s just a sweet seven-year-old. 

Naturally, there are office politics but it doesn’t overpower the central plot. It is woven into the mystery and provides a smooth landing for the ending and maybe a lead for the next book. 

To summarize, Head Cases is an entertaining novel if you like FBI-style police procedurals with highly talented characters. While it has a few issues, there’s no denying that I enjoyed the book and look forward to the next one. 

My thanks to Steve Erickson, NetGalley, and St. Martin’s (Minotaur Books), for eARC.