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The Day the Music Died
  
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The Day the Music Died (Hardcover)

by Ed Gorman (Author)
3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)

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Veteran mystery writer, editor, and anthologist Ed Gorman plays all the right notes in his latest book--hopefully the first of a promising period series. It's 1959 (the book says 1958, but that must be a mistake, because everyone knows Buddy Holly died in a plane crash on February 3, 1959), and Sam McCain--"a young lawyer in a town that already had too many lawyers"--is working as an investigator in Black River Falls, Iowa, for Judge Esme Anne Whitney, a wealthy and eccentric old woman who smokes Gauloises in Chesterfield country and takes pleasure in shooting McCain with rubberbands while they confer.

The day after a long drive to and from what turns out to be Buddy Holly's last concert before his fatal plane crash, McCain finds the murdered wife of Judge Whitney's rotten nephew, Kenny, and then is unable to stop Kenny from killing himself. Everybody, including the town's loutish police chief, is sure that Kenny killed his wife--only McCain has his doubts.

Complicating things are the troubles of a local black former football star now crippled by booze, and those of McCain's teenage sister who is trying to abort her baby. The period details about race and sex seem dead right; the people of Black River Falls, especially McCain's family and various girlfriends, are all sharply-sketched; and even the very late appearance of a possible villain can't spoil the considerable fun.

Previous examples of Gorman's craft, or sullen art, include Daughter of Darkness, Black River Falls, Dark Trail, The First Lady, Hawk Moon, The Marilyn Tapes, Senatorial Privilege, Trouble Man, and Cage of Night. --Dick Adler --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.



From Publishers Weekly

There's a dead-on sense of time and place?February 1958 in small-town Iowa?in Gorman's latest, which, despite minor problems with plot resolution, makes an enjoyable start to a new series. Narrator Sam McCain, "a young lawyer in a town that already had too many lawyers," earns most of his income by working as an investigator in Black River Falls for the wealthy and eccentric Judge Esme Anne Whitney, who smokes Gauloises in Chesterfield country and takes pleasure in shooting McCain with rubber bands. The day after a long drive to what turns out to be Buddy Holly's last concert before his fatal plane crash, McCain discovers the body of the wife of Whitney's rotten nephew, Kenny, and then is unable to stop Kenny from killing himself. Everybody, including the loutish local police chief, is sure that Kenny murdered his wife, but McCain has his doubts. Complicating matters are the troubles of a local former football star now crippled by booze and of McCain's teenage sister, who is trying to get an abortion. Gorman sketches the people of Black River Falls, especially McCain's family and various girlfriends, with a sharp eye, and even the very late appearance of a possible villain doesn't spoil the fun: despite the title, Gorman, as usual, rocks.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews

13 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
3.6 out of 5 stars (13 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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3.0 out of 5 stars Nice storytelling, but what about copyediting?, Feb 10 2004
By A Customer
This review is from: The Day The Music Died (Paperback)
As many have pointed out, the date that Buddy Holly died is wrong, and song lyrics are misquoted. There are other copyediting errors as well. We are told that the Judge's grandfather was shipped out to Iowa after disgracing the family back east. But later it becomes the judge's greatgreatfather. There are other such minor gaffes. But far worse, especially for a novel in this genre, the hero solves the mystery with the help of a verbal clue referring to something a character said earlier. But I went back and reread that passage several times and the key line was never said! For a mystery such an error is disgraceful. Didn't anybody read this book before it went to press? All that aside, this is a minor but reasonably entertaining effort, with a nice breezy style and a likeable protagonist. There is little real suspense, however, and the author seems far more interested in depicting the late '50s small town Iowa setting than in building a creditable mystery. The "solution" to the crime seems tacked on and half-hearted.
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5.0 out of 5 stars A lucky Find., May 23 2002
By Mary Baumer "darlin13" (Waukesha, WI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: The Day the Music Died (Hardcover)
I found this one on the unwanted books rack at my local Gym. Never had heard of Ed Gorman before (turns out hes pretty prolific!) but this is a great 1st novel in this new series which takes place in the late 50s. I loved the plot, the characters, and the setting (midwest 'natch!)- I await my other books in the series!
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2.0 out of 5 stars retro revisionism, Sep 17 2001
By TundraVision (o/~ from the Land of Sky Blue Waters o/~) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Day The Music Died (Paperback)
The characters and action in this book are possessed of a political correctness that did not exist in the Heartland (or probably anywhere else) at the time (whichever time that happens to be - February 3, 1958 or 1959 - see previous reviews.) In a time when June Cleaver wore chic dresses and real pearls everyday to wash & wax the kitchen floor, the author expects us to believe that one of the main characters is a FEmale judge and another main female character intents to go to law school ? It just wasn't like that then.

Another error - let's try a little sing-a-long here: o/~ 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 . tell the people what she wore. She wore an itsy bitsy, teeny weenie, _____ polka dot bikini o/~ The author gets gonged here because he says it was pink. [p. 154, original hardcover ed.] Those of us old enough to know better will tell you it was yellow.

The mystery is just so-so and the ambiance the author takes pains to create is simply not credible because he needed fact checks!

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 		 Most recent customer reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Easy read
The author has another winning book, but don't expect much stimulation from it; it is an easy read, but that is not a bad thing. Read more
Published on Jul 26 2001 by bill runyon

2.0 out of 5 stars Dissapointing
As historical fiction, and as a mystery, this books fails. Besides occasional references to convertibles and AM radio, the story could have been from any time. Read more
Published on Jul 25 2001 by Michael

4.0 out of 5 stars I must be missing something..but I did find a good book!
"Buddy Holly died on February 3, 1959 in a plane crash in Iowa during a snowstorm." Now that's a direct quote from The Fifties Website and it conforms to the date of the... Read more
Published on April 29 2000 by Judith Lindenau

5.0 out of 5 stars The 50's Never Sounded So Good !
Sam McCain is the NEW Rock-N-Roll Hero for the ages ! Ed Gorman is GREAT....He definitly delivers the good's ! I have read both book's in this series... Read more
Published on Feb 11 2000

4.0 out of 5 stars Pick a date, any date . . .
I almost put this book down after the first page. How much can you expect from a story built around a famous event when neither the writer nor the editors have bothered to learn... Read more
Published on Jan 26 2000

5.0 out of 5 stars REAL PEOPLE IN A REAL PLACE, AND A GOOD READ.
The author of this new book has given his readers a REAL PERSON to follow around in a REAL PLACE. One almost forgets that this is a mystery novel as Sam McCain's life, loves,... Read more
Published on Jul 18 1999

1.0 out of 5 stars Couldn't get the facts right
Initially, I was really excited and ready to read this "historically accurate" mystery, because I have always loved Buddy Holly's music and the period it came from. Read more
Published on May 24 1999

5.0 out of 5 stars A Magical Blend
Unlike any other writer, Gorman successfully weaves darkness and humor, riveting suspense and gentle poignancy, literary and genre, in this excellent novel. Read more
Published on May 9 1999

3.0 out of 5 stars THE Promising but ultimately disappointing.
THE DAY THE MUSIC DIED has a promising premise, historical setting and protagonist but is ultimately disappointing. Read more
Published on Mar 30 1999

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent story line.
Great book. Can't wait for McCain's next rock 'n roll adventure!!! Really well written.
Published on Feb 22 1999

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