DANE CURSE is the first book of the BLACK CAPE CASE FILES by Matt Abraham. It is the story of the titular detective who is a former supervillain with the powers of the Wrecker but who has since retired to become a private detective specializing in the affairs of "black capes." Dane Curse is a fascinating noir private eye in a seemingly Golden Age of Superheroism city that has the same sort of timelessness as Gotham City.
Dane's business is doing alright but not exceptional when he gets the opportunity of a lifetime: the Sindicate is offering ten million dollars to a selection of the best private eyes in the city to investigate the death of the world's greatest superhero. Pinnacle's death threatens to tear the city apart as he was a figure who kept all of the most violent heroes in check while also intimidated the worst villains into compliance. He has a week before the story inevitably gets out and the Sindicate gets the blame.
I really enjoyed this novel and it's going on my list of top ten recommended superhero novels. Dane Curse has a believable gritty attitude that invokes Sam Spade and Phillip Marlowe without actively copying them. He is respectful of criminals and remorseless for his history of villainy but has a moral compass guiding him based more on feelings than the law.
While Dane seems a little too trusting of the various femme fatales in the book, I think we still is great to read the perspective of. Unsurprisingly, he reminds me a lot of Harry Dresden who did a similar thing with wizards that Dane Curse does for superheroes. The book doesn't have the Dresden Files' level of humor or world-building but it is well done in both. It also manages to make a believable and consistent superhero world.
The action is very well done in this book and genuinely exciting. Dane is indestructible and super-strong but he's just one superhuman in a city full of them. He also has a pair of superpowerful super-science/magic guns but even these are no guarantees against his opponents. I appreciated this as it allowed dynamic fight scenes without making Dane overpowered for the setting. Several times he's overwhelmed and even captured during the book.
In conclusion, I strongly recommend this book if you liked the Dresden Files or just detective fiction in general. I also recommend it if you have a fondness for superhero fiction. I really enjoyed it and hope you pick it up.
9/10