Ain’t No Jazz in Kansas City

Rodgers debuts with a memorable, despair-laced crime novel set in 1980s Kansas City. Mike Smith was a small-time stand-up comic who struggled to get booked until a windfall from a life insurance policy enabled him to open the Repartee, a comedy club housed in a former church. The Repartee can’t survive from purely legitimate operations, however, so Smith keeps the doors open by partnering with drug dealers who use the venue to distribute narcotics. As a result, the Repartee’s doorman, Corey Edwards, is responsible for receiving hefty drug deliveries and ensuring they make their way to Mike. Corey reluctantly shoulders the responsibility, but when the police start sniffing around the Repartee, it angers Mike’s partners and convinces some of them that Corey—or someone else at the Repartee—might be snitching. Caught in the crossfire of those accusations, Mike tries in vain to keep passions from boiling over into harsh violence. Mike and his colleagues come off as relatably flawed, three-dimensional characters, making their plights all the more stressful as the action heats up. It’s a grimly satisfying neo-noir. (Self-published)