- Paperback: 228 pages
- Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press (Feb 1 2008)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1590584635
- ISBN-13: 978-1590584637
- Product Dimensions: 20.9 x 13.8 x 1.5 cm
- Shipping Weight: 295 g
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Product Details |
Product Description
Review
..."thoughtful and exciting.... Among its other virtues, it captures summer 1972 and its motley crew--outlaw bikers, war protestors, marijuana growers and users--to understated perfection." -- Dick Adler, Chicago Tribune
"Readers will enjoy this tale that captures the history and atmosphere of 1970s California as well as the complex dynamics of a fascinating family" --Booklist
"Crime, punishment and redemption. Kuhlken's sixth is by far his best." --Kirkus Reviews
"A compelling storyline with the right amount of suspense will keep readers guessing" --Library Journal
"Kuhlken brings the social and cultural scene of the period vividly to life." --Publisher's Weekly
"Music, marijuana, and murder provide Clifford with more than he ever bargained for, but it's an entertaining farrago for the reader." --Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine
Product Description
It's late summer, 1972, up in California's redwood forests. They seem a "safe and wondrous place," but some of Evergreen's population is growing pot up in the trees and others are bent on stealing it. Then there's the coming folk festival, a jamboree bringing in musicians, fans, war protestors--a ferment of flower power (the local hippies), raw power (the local biker gangs, notably the Cossacks), and the power of the law (local and federal). Skirting the edges are shades of the Manson Family and the Mexican Mafia. Clifford Hickey, scheduled to perform a guitar gig at the festival before trucking off to law school, arrives at his brother Alvaro's peaceful woodland campsite. And within moments Alvaro, combat trained, is faced with six armed men in badges crashing the camp, and runs. Clifford, surprised, is arrested and brutally cuffed, so brutally he fears for his hands. He then learns that a young man, one of the sheriffs' nephews, has just been murdered. Alvaro is the posse's quarry. So here's Clifford, on the brink of adult life, pitched into not just a murder but what develops into a duel between the Hickeys--for his father and mother soon drive up--and the law, between the Hickeys and the Cossacks--who seemingly have their own agenda for Alvaro and, between the Hickeys and the locals, and finally between the Hickeys and their own past. Ken Kuhlken won St. Martin's Best First Private Eye Novel contest for the first Hickey family case, The Loud Adios.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.5 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
1970s California murder mystery excels, May 24 2007
By Ed Lynskey, "author of ASK THE DICE and THE Z... - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Do-Re-Mi (Hardcover)
It's Summer 1972 and Clifford Hickey, 22, has traveled to Evergreen in the California redwood district to play in a folk festival with his brother Alvaro, an Vietnam vet and former drug user. The local sheriff's nephew Jimmy Marris ends up murdered and Alvaro who takes flight becomes the main suspect. Clifford calls in his Pop, a retired, tough-minded P.I. to help shake things out and clear Alvaro's name. This stylish, offbeat, and intricate murder mystery features the eccentric, likeable Hickey family (DO-RE-MI is fourth in the series, the third title THE LOUD ADIOS won a 1991 Shamus award). Lots of 1970s echoes. Phil Ochs headlines the festival. Clifford's friend Nancy lived with the Charlie Manson family. Maverick bikers ("Cossacks"), jaded hippies, and corrupt sheriffs complicate matters for Clifford who might not make it to begin law school in the Fall. Something different, this first-rate P.I. novel spins a compelling tale with a little romance as well.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Do-Re-Mi, April 4 2009
By Gary Swaim - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Do-Re-Mi (Hardcover)
I'm not one to do this sort of thing, with any regularity. However, I'm more than happy to recommend this book to any and all, especially those who like the mix of detective/mystery stories with strong intellectual turns. Any time I can read a story like this one (a mix of serious mayhem, a focus on the 60's, reference to "Mood Indigo" and Kirkegaard, and much more in the way of surprises), I'm delighted. Highyly recommend this read!
5.0 out of 5 stars
wonderful historical private investigate tale, Dec 20 2006
By Harriet Klausner - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Do-Re-Mi (Paperback)
In 1972, twenty two year-old Clifford Hickey gives it one last chance to live his dream of making it as a folk singer. However, though he admires his taciturn ethical private investigator dad Tom, Clifford would prefer not to follow his footsteps into law enforcement; he informs his father that if he fails this time in his music endeavor he plans to enter USC law school.Clifford is scheduled perform at Evergreen jamboree. He arrives in the midst of the redwoods to stay at the camp of his half-brother Alvaro. However, soon afterwards, cops assault the site with Alvaro fleeing into the woods while Clifford is incarcerated, but eventually freed. Clifford learns that Alvaro has been charged with the murder of a local law enforcement official's relative. He does not believe Alvaro would commit such a crime so taking a page from his sleuthing dad, Clifford notifies his father, but begins to investigate rather than wait for the clever private detective to arrive as time is critical. He soon finds every type of sub-group in town wants Alvaro to take the fall.
The mantle moves on as the son takes center stage from the father (Tom was the focus of the previous books - all worth reading). The story line is driven by Clifford's discovery of social strata circa Viet Nam era California woods where hippies, bikers, Feds, and locals intermingle in a fractured peaceful coexistence. The whodunit is cleverly set up so that Alvaro looks guilty to readers and support cast with only his family believing otherwise. Ken Kuhlken provides flavor of the era inside a wonderful historical private investigate tale.
Harriet Klausner
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