Black's Beach Shuffle by Corey Lynn Fayman

Rolly Waters is a 39-year-old musician and has been playing guitar in bars, and clubs, etc. for many years now. Up until about five years ago, he lived the rock guitarist life too: booze, drugs, women…a sordid life all around. But a catastrophic event changed all that and now he’s sober. Still playing with his band. He’s good too, but not quite good enough to make the big time and earn enough dough for a quality life.

So, he’s taken up that age-old profession of private investigator. Usually, he’s hired to find lost children/grandchildren, obtain photographic evidence of marital affairs, etc. But now, out of the blue, he’s hired by a new-age dot.com style start-up company who has plans to make loads of money. However, seems they’ve lost (or had stolen) a key piece of hardware without which they’d be sunk even before the launch. Could it be corporate espionage? Revenge? Or something even more sinister?

I really enjoyed this novel. It’s cleverly written, well-plotted, and kept me interested all the way through. The setting of San Diego and, in particular, the infamous Black's Beach, is also well-handled. As a frequent visitor to the region, I recognized many of the city landmarks and I thought the author (a life-long resident) succeeded at what so many crime authors strive for: establishing the setting as a character in and of itself.

 

One thing bugged me somewhat, but not so much as to lessen my enjoyment of the book. The characters’ names are almost all derived from guitar brands or have tie-ins to the music industry. I picked up on this right off the bat when the character of “Fender” was introduced. Then when I met “King Gibson” I was on to the scheme. Now, I’m not particularly knowledgeable about guitars but I found myself looking up every name I came across and sure enough…names like “Marley” or “Simmons”.  Some names combine two brands, like “Curtis Vox”. A foxy lady is named “Alesis” (a music company), “Porter” and “Hayes” are a pair of insurance investigators. Even our main protagonist, Roland “Rolly” Waters” is a conglomeration of two brands. I suppose that’s all fine, but it smacks of being too cute. As I say, it bothered me some because it took me out of the narrative every time I met a new character and had to look up where their name came from.

This is a solid story with a well-thought-out mystery plot. The author’s own background in music really shines through in a realistic way. Other than their names, the characters are well-rounded and interesting, especially Rolly, who struggles to overcome his past choices.

Looking forward to reading the next in the series.

I'll Kill You Next! by Adam Knight (Lawrence Lariar)

Steve Conacher is a private investigator. He’s been hired by Luke Yorke, an aging cartoonist and well known as the man behind the famous “Caleb Straight” comic strip. Yorke has hired Conacher to locate Mike Smith, an up-and-coming cartoonist and Yorke’s protégé. Conacher is a good choice given his own friendship with Smith. But Conacher knows there is more to the story than just a missing persons case. Yorke is getting old, and he's ill. He needs somebody to take over the reigns of the comic strip and thinks Mike Smith has the talent to do so. Of greater concern to Conacher, however, is that Yorke’s spoiled brat of a nephew will take over unless Smith can be found.

The stakes grow higher when Mike Smith is found dead. It looks to be suicide, but Conacher knows better. The discovery of a new rival comic strip being readied for launch gives a prime motive for Smith to be cleared out of the way. But who is behind this new strip? Who has the talent? It seems likely that it’s one of three dames orbiting Luke Yorke’s world.

The author of this novel is Lawrence Lariar, writing under the pen name “Adam Knight”. He also wrote crime novels under the names Michael Stark and Marston la France. Lariar, however, was not only a novelist. He is perhaps better known in the world of comics where he worked as a cartoonist, a cartoon editor and as the compiler of the “Best Cartoons of the Year” series. He definitely knew the mid-20th century carton business and this novel reflects that expertise. At one point he couldn't resist having his main character, PI Conacher find a copy of “Best Cartoons of the Year” while searching a room.

So it seems the world of 1950s cartooning can be just as cut-throat as any other business, especially when three beautiful women are involved, each with their own agenda. Conacher gets beat up quite a lot over the course of the story, walking into ambushes, being clobbered over the head and waking up on some couch somewhere. But in the end, he proves his cerebral acuity, figuring out what’s been happening, and resolving the crime.

I should also mention the teaser quote on the back of the book: "She got what she wanted. She was an eye-catching dish with a low, throaty voice, and she purred like a caged tiger. As she slowly rose from the couch, she pointed the gun right at my stomach and whispered, “I got rid of him and now…I’ll Kill You Next!” Like many similar paperbacks of the 1950s, this quote and the title itself have little to do with the story. It’s pure marketing designed to get their readers (young men) to plunk down a quarter and buy the book. No such quote, or scene, appears in the novel.

While this wasn’t a remarkable reading experience for me, it was entertaining and kept me interested to see what happened next. Given the opportunity, I would read more of Lawrence Lariar’s crime fiction…and maybe check out his work in the comic industry as well.

Strip for Murder by Richard S. Prather

Richard S. Prather wrote over three dozen Shell Scott novels as well as numerous short stories published in the likes of 'Manhunt' and 'Mike Shayne Mystery Magazine'. There was even a 'Shell Scott Mystery Magazine' that was published for a while in the 1960s. This novel was fairly early in the series, first published in 1956. The early books were a little inconsistent and one gets the idea that Prather was wrestling with just how he wanted his main character to be. Some were more hard-boiled like Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer and others tended toward the outlandish and comedic. But by the time this book was written, I would have thought the character had settled into a more or less consistent style. But now I’m not so sure.

Many readers regard this one as among the best of the Shell Scott novels. Here, Shell finds himself hired by a wealthy mother to investigate the background of a man who her daughter has married rather impulsively. Is it genuine love or is the guy a gold digger? To add to the intrigue, Shell discovers his predecessor on the case, another private eye, was found murdered. 

Shell’s investigation takes him to a nudist (‘naturist’) colony where he goes “undercover” so to speak as a health and fitness instructor. Of course, in the world of Shell Scott, the women (or ‘tomatoes” as he often refers to them) are almost always gorgeous and willing. The plot is still hardboiled but is interrupted plenty of times with screwball situations, such as his leading the entire nudist colony in calisthenics. His own corny sense of humor is on full display as well. (Sorry, couldn’t resist the double entendre).

The investigation takes him to other locales as well, some very hard boiled while others more of the outlandish type such as a scene where Shell dresses as a knight and uses a lance to fight off some toughs. The mystery is actually fairly complex with a number of red herrings and Shell is adept at following the clues in a logical manner. I felt a little thrown back and forth, going from one serious life-threatening scenario into a wacky situation almost immediately. But for all that, Shell Scott is a fun character to follow and I will keep doing so.

The Long Lavender Look (Travis McGee) by John D. MacDonald

The 12th book in the Travis McGee series is, perhaps, my favorite so far.  That’s saying something. 

 Travis and his pal Meyer are driving home from a wedding in Travis’ Rolls Royce “pickup” he’s named Miss Agnes.  Late at night in rural, backwater Cypress County of Florida, a brief flash of a young woman darts into the road causing Travis to lose control and end up upside down and underwater in a drainage canal. Meyer is able to fish him out safely, but Miss Agnes will need to be towed out.  But as they’re walking to the nearest “town” somebody shoots at them, believing them to be a couple of henchmen of a notorious local casino robber. This case of mistaken identity keeps on going as Travis is framed for murder and arrested by the local sheriff.

While the main plot involves Travis’ personal investigation to clear his name by finding what happened to the real robbers and murderers, there a number of subplots and deviations as well.  But it’s a tightly packed narrative and fascinating to see unwind.  Perhaps one of the saddest scenes in the entire Travis McGee series occurs in this book and involves the lovable, if odd, Betsy Kapp.  The story can be pretty convoluted but it all comes together in the final chapters. Travis himself is heavily impacted by the events in the book and by the end, there can be nothing sweeter in the world than to get back home to slip F-18 and The Busted Flush houseboat.

Thankfully, for me, he still has nine more adventures to come.

Nightmare in Pink (Travis McGee) by John D. MacDonald

The second Travis McGee novel finds our self-described boat-bum doing a favor for an old army buddy who has been confined to a VA hospital and, sadly, is unlikely to live much longer.  The man’s young sister, Nina, needs help as it seems her fiancé has just been murdered in an apparent mugging gone bad.  Travis’s investigation takes him to New York and leads him from one contact to another, the trail eventually leading to a high-priced call girl and an incredible scheme to steel millions from wealthy businessmen.  Along the way, despite trying not to, Travis falls for young Nina, and she for him, although they both know it won't be a lasting thing.

John D. MacDonald was still forming his character Travis McGee in this second book in the 21-book series, a decidedly different sort of protagonist than what the marketplace at the time was used to.  Travis has flaws and, generally speaking, being around him isn't always the safest place to be.  Collateral damage occurs and innocent people sometimes get caught in the crossfire (or by poisoned coffee in this case).  Most people agree that it is not until the third novel, "A Purple Place for Dying" that the general pattern and style for the rest of the books is laid down.  Regardless, this novel was an enjoyable read despite the drugged-out LSD tripping scenes at a 1960’s era lobotomizing horror factory masquerading as a mental hospital.  The title of the novel is most apropos!

The Deep Blue Good-by (Travis McGee) by John D. MacDonald

I first read this novel back in High School and was ill-prepared to appreciate its style.  I had read science fiction, fantasy, and books like Doc Savage almost exclusively and I thought it was high time I branched out.  In fact, I think this was the first book of the hard boiled crime/noir/PI genre I had ever read.  It seemed dull to me at the time but as I grew older (and older) and sampled more and more of the genre and came to love it even, I knew that someday I would get back to Travis McGee and see what it was that I had missed all those years before.

Turned out I was correct.  This time around I thoroughly enjoyed it and will now plan to read the rest of the entire series over the next several years.  The fascinating thing about this book is not so much the plot (although it’s a good one), or the setting (also good), but rather the character of Travis McGee himself.  I really enjoy his approach to life and his ability to thumb his nose at what “traditional” society expects, choosing to live how he wants.  Accumulating money is not his end goal.  He looks out for those that are getting bullied or become innocent victims of the powerful so we readers want to root for him.

The author’s prose is also great fun to read, something else that I under-appreciated in my youth.  He could turn a phrase with the best of them and say so much with a single sentence.  Yes, I look forward to my journey with Travis over the entire 21 novel set.  Overall I give it 4.5 stars, rounded up to 5 because of the sheer joy I experienced at proving my youthful opinion so very wrong.