After doing a stretch in San Quentin, Johnny Hayden decides to commit to a quiet life in middle management. While saving up to buy a local motel and quietly completing a correspondence course in hospitality, Johnny is approached by an old friend with a con to end all cons. Reluctant at first, Johnny eventually caves…
William Maynard, a former magician turned card shark, was run out of Chicago following a botched poker scheme. Following a nasty dust up, Bill befriends a dentist and finds himself with an invitation to a low stakes card game. It’s there that he meets Joyce, the sultry wife of tax lawyer Murray Rogers. Before long,…
An alternate title could have been “Drugs Are Bad” or “Hasty Decisions are not Recommended”. While they’re not as eye catching or as hip as “A Diet of Treacle”, they still sum up the story pretty accurately. Joe and Shank have a strange living arrangement. Sharing an apartment in the West Village, Shank supports Joe…
Richard Aleas’ Little Girl Lost A long lost love of private investigator, John Blake, turns up dead on the roof of a seedy strip club in New York. As he investigates the circumstances surrounding her death, Blake uncovers a life that he never imagined possible for his high school sweetheart.John Blake works with Leo, a…
Gardner’s Top of the Heap Det. Donald Lam is hired to locate two women who could verify the whereabouts of a man thought to be involved in the disappearance of well known, San Francisco socialite. Unsatisfied with the outcome coupled with a feeling that his client’s story stinks, Lam lets his instincts take him further…
Max Phillips’s Fade to Blonde Former boxer and current odd-jobber Ray Corson is enlisted by damsel in distress, Rebecca LaFontaine, to shake off some unwanted attention. A gentleman by the name of Halliday intends to disfigure Rebecca but not if Corson has anything to do with it. This novel had to be dripping with solid gold…
Lawrence Block’s Grifter’s Game If this is any indication of what I have ahead of me with Hard Case Crime, I’m a happy man. Not only is this novel so tightly edited, it’s a no-nonsense, straight up page-turner. When I was hit with the first plot twist, my mouth dropped open. Maybe some people might be…
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