Rare Books
A country of old men : a Dave Brandstetter novel
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Troublemaker : a Dave Brandstetter novel
Rare Books
"Rick Wendell wouldn't hurt a flea. The big, jovial owner of the Hang Ten, a surfing-themed gay bay [that is, bar] on the boardwalk, was loved by regulars and new arrivals alike. But Rick was found naked and dead, with a local hustler named Larry Johns standing over him, smoking gun in hand. Wendell's death is ruled as a homicide and Johns is arrested. Everyone thinks it's a simple open-and-shut case. Everyone except the death claims investigator, Dave Brandstetter. Brandstetter, a homosexual himself, doesn't make the same assumptions about the crime scene and easy story it tells. Larry Johns had enough time to escape had he wanted to. Not to mention Johns lacked any discernable motive, especially since the $200 in Wendell's wallet was left untouched. In an investigation that takes him from sun-scorched hillside ranches to seedy boardwalk bars, Brandstetter gets to the bottom of a twisty mystery in this hardboiled and entertaining portrait of the '70s gay culture by groundbreaking poet and award-winning crime writer Joseph Hansen"--Back cover.
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Skinflick : a Dave Brandstetter novel
Rare Books
"Lon Tooker certainly fits the profile: big, strong, a Marine Corps veteran, and recently the target of evangelical crusader Gerald Dawson's wrath. Tooker's adult toys and pornography store on the local skid row has recently become the target of Dawson's church men's group and their destructive masked raids on 'un-Christian' businesses. When Dawson is strangled to death by someone of Tooker's size and ability, the police see a smut-peddler with a motive. Case closed. Death claims investigator Dave Brandstetter doesn't like it. By all accounts Tooker is a softy incapable of such a crime. Actual evidence is nonexistent and assumptions many. And Dave particularly doesn't care for assumptions based on someone's sex life. But Dave is also navigating new personal territory. His father's death has left him bereaved and for the first time in a long time without a job. Dave quit the insurance company his father built and has struck out on his own as a private investigator. Add in his breakup with his recent partner and he's a man unencumbered. It's the late 1970s and Dave may be aging a bit but he's still handsome, wealthy, and recently in possession of a new convertible Triumph. Looks like it's not all hard work"--Back cover.
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Gravedigger : a Dave Brandstetter novel
Rare Books
"Two years ago Charles Westover disgraced himself and his family when he was disbarred for bribery. Westover's daughter Serenity, disgusted with her once beloved father, ran away to a cult founded by a mesmerizingly handsome young man, a self-appointed messiah going by the grimly grandiose name of Azrael. The whereabouts of Serenity pass unknown for years until the police raid Azrael's compound and discover that the cult leader lived up to his ghastly 'Angel of Death' moniker. Thinking his daughter has been murdered, Charles Westover claims her life insurance, and then he too vanishes. Insurance companies don't like to cut a check without a body and especially don't like when the recepient [that is, recipient] is also missing. Hired as a private investigator, David Brandstetter quickly finds himself in a complicated maze of lies and hidden histories. It's not all bad times and extreme hazard for our man Dave. A passionate romance has entered his life with the reappearance of Cecil Harris, a handsome young African American investigative reporter for the local news station looking to get to the bottom of a different kind of story"--Back cover.
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Fadeout : a Dave Brandstetter novel
Rare Books
"Five decades after its original landmark publication, Joseph Hansen's 'Fadeout' is as fresh and important as ever. Preceded only by a handful of gay protagonists in crime fiction, Hansen's Dave Brandstetter, a ruggedly handsome World War II vet with a quick wit, a faultless moral compass, and endless confidence, broke the mold and won over a large reading audience, a feat previously considered impossible for queer fiction. Set in the mid-1960s, 'Fadeout' centers on the disappearance of a Southern California radio personality named Fox Olson. A failed writer, Olson finally found success as a beloved folk singer and wholesome country raconteur with a growing national audience. The community is therefore shocked when Olson's car is found wrecked, having been driven off a bridge and swept away in a fast-moving arroyo on a rainy night. A life insurance claim is filed by Olson's widow and the company holding the policy sends their best man to investigate. The problem is that Olson's body was never found. Not in the car. Not farther down the river. As Dave Brandstetter begins his investigation, he quickly finds that none of it adds up"--From back cover.
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Death claims : a Dave Brandstetter novel
Rare Books
"Since a burning accident that left him painfully disfigured, John Oats, a well-liked collectible book dealer, has been self-isolating at his beach house in Arena Blanca, California. An avid swimmer, John Oats had taken to night swimming to hide his injuries from daytime beachgoers. When his body is found one morning smashed against the rocks at the treacherous point near the house, the authorities rule it 'Death by Misadventure.' Insurance companies don't much care for verdicts like that and therefore Medallion Insurance, the policy holder for Oats's substantial life insurance policy, sends out its best investigator, Dave Brandstetter, to poke holes in the story. The night Oats died there was a dangerous storm along the coast, and Brandstetter finds it hard to believe that the bookseller, a lifelong swimmer, would have gone out. As his investigation reveals more of John Oats's sad story Brandstetter learns that the motives for murder are many. But Brandstetter has his own problems to deal with. Still mourning the death of his partner, Rod, Dave is navigating his own twilight world of grief. His new lover, Doug, is also grieving, and the two men must come to a reckoning of whether their love is an ersatz stand-in for their lost partners or something more"--Back cover.
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Nightwork : a Dave Brandstetter novel
Rare Books
"Gifford Gardens has seen better days. As white families move away to the suburbs to flee the flooding and neglect, the city in turn cares less about fixing the problems. What was once a nice neighborhood has become a slum and a violent battleground for rival gangs. Paul and Angela Myers are among the white families that remained. With the economy in a downturn and wages frozen, Paul takes a job long-haul truck driving. The freight he moves around is strictly 'no questions,' but Paul is an honest man and begins to wonder about what he has become a part of. One night, Paul's truck flies off a cliff and explodes in midair. Did he fall asleep at the wheel, or was he murdered? Paul's life insurance company hires renowned private investigator Dave Brandstetter to look at inconsistencies with the accident. While digging into Paul's past, Dave will uncover a haunting connection between Paul's untimely death and the happier years in the declining neighborhood of Gifford Gardens. Meanwhile Dave and his lover, reporter Cecil Harris, have settled in together quite cozily. Cecil has recovered from the injuries he received helping Dave on his previous case, but the psychological damage is still present. Dave can't help wondering if he will ever be able to protect Cecil from his dangerous line of work"-- Back cover.
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