Book
Review: Detective Steve Boyko Hits the Streets of
Body Traffic, By Alex Domokos &
Rita Y. Toews.
Reviewed by Andrij Makukh
This book—or one like it—should have been
written long ago. Why can’t an undercover police officer on assignment on the
mean streets of
The story-line is
relatively straightforward, but the requisite twists and coincidences are
thrown in for good measure. Undercover cop Stan Boyko, sensing that the cover
on his identity may be blown while on assignment in
Before you can say “love
interest,” Stan crosses paths with Sonja Sepsik while she is on day leave from
her English-language training for a career in local prostitution. But Sonja is
not really a working girl. She has been sold into the world’s oldest profession
by her drug-addled brother, who, under false pretences, had convinced her to
leave
Meanwhile, Boyko will
suffer mightily for not being able to come out straight with the auburn-haired
Ukrainian beauty to whom he is attracted, especially as the plot thickens.
Things get more
complicated thanks to a sideline saga about Sonja’s uncle, the black sheep of
the family; the machinations of the slick but slimy director of a leading
Winnipeg medical research institution; the antics of the story’s Anglo-Canadian
baddie, James Sinclair; and some local lore about the Hell’s Angels’ move on
Winnipeg.
In the end, you get a
decent read and a few hours of escapist entertainment.
That said, there are some
shortcomings with Body Traffic. The most egregious is the notion that
Stan Boyko can pass himself off as a native Ukrainian. Other than the obvious
language problem, he doesn’t even know where “Ushgorod” [sic] is located. And
the coincidences, while making for a neat package, are just a bit too
convenient. But that all goes with the turf. So, although I would hesitate to call
Body Traffic a great detective novel, it is certainly more than
adequate. And it is cool to have a protagonist named Stan Boyko. It’s perfect
summer reading fare.