This was a surprisingly good book. I was looking for something to read, and I had pulled half dozen books off the shelf to see if any caught my interest. Not really, so I started reading the first paragraph or two of this one. Pretty dull, but let's keep going. First chapter was only 7 pages, and still not gripping in any way, except for the fact that the reading went fast, WAY FAST. This book was entirely readable despite my first impressions with respect to the tone.

The way this is written I was thinking that all "P.I.s" were going to be called "Dicks," and all the baddies "wise guys." Spare me. I wasn't far off the mark, but it wasn't that bad. The author was a bit too obsessed with using the word "slide," and "irony" and "ironic" throughout primarily when criticizing and mocking "hipsters," but I ended up liking the greater writing style.

Examples of the above:

"Mountcastle got up, turned, and began to slide lightly out of my office."

And:

"From Mar Vista, you pop onto Venice and slide into Hollywood. Slide, my friends. Slide."

Then the other:

Hipster Heaven. Don't even fucking walk in without the proper amount of irony. They should sell pencil-thin mustaches and pencil-thin cardigan sweaters at the door."

And:

"Yes, it has become trendy and full of hipsters and there's too much irony, for sure, but it's still good."

Or just:

"Hipsterville."

I never did get all of the mustache musings, his were all "pencil-thin." Whenever I think of "pencil-thin mustaches" it is either Vincent Price or that Jimmy Buffett song. I thought all hipsters had the little all-in-one scruffy mustache-goatee, never one without the other. You know what I mean. Yeah, you know what I mean. Then again, it has been a while since I have been to L.A. Maybe it's because I lived in Del Rey, the other side of the 405 from Darvelle's Mar Vista.

About the writing, I liked the continuous tangents. Explaining some side issue or thought or opinion to fill in the bigger picture, and then coming right back to the story. I do that so I can relate. I think a lot of people are thrown off track when that happens though. To me, it contributed to the flow and made the entire story a lot more interesting. As I said above, it went fast and never got bogged down.

Part of what killed if for me was that the main suspect wasn't the main suspect, but there was a cloud of suspicion just because. And the whole story leads up to a point... until it doesn't. All of the pieces are put into place during the final rendering; then it all makes sense if that's the story you want to go with. I didn't because that negated one of the best parts of the book. Oh well.

Another downside was that the main character is fixated on drinking bad beer despite his reasoning to the contrary. It's like continually espousing bad coffee, pick something else okay, life is too short. Or, at least be consistent, drink bad beer and drink bad coffee and only date ugly women. Okay. But he tries to put a sophisticated spin on drinking bad beer and that didn't work for me. Sure, drinking "craft beer," like smoking cigars, can be pretentious, but that doesn't negate drinking good beer over beer with no taste and no flavor. There, enough said. ( )

This is somehow Sam Spade, but also Zen & the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, I stayed up late to finish it and will read it again to rejoice in the details. People who love LA will especially enjoy it. ( )

I loved this book! If I lived in Los Angeles, California or one of the surrounding neighborhoods and needed a private investigator, I’d want to find a guy just like John Darvelle to help me. I wasn’t sure if John Darvelle would capture my attention throughout his sharing of this case. John was introduced as a “man of specific tastes – simple design, smart women, and cheap American beer.” I’d much prefer a glass of Merlot to a glass of cheap beer but for his line of work I liked his philosophy of driving a car nobody can remember. That made sense. I also wasn’t sure if he’d spend too much time playing ping pong since there was a table at the office and as a centerpiece at his home. However, the description of his office with a great big sliding door to let in the sunlight and breezes and to expand his view and his home at the end of a cul-de-sac complete with a large rectangular pool in the big backyard sounded near perfect for workspace and downtime.

I certainly had no idea what the definition of a ‘Pipe Girl’ is/was prior to reading this novel. I won’t add a spoiler. Suffice it to say – the definition would seem to be every man’s dream girl.

At first I was a little distracted by the amount of time that John used to share his knowledge about all the little neighborhoods surrounding Los Angeles. My first thought was ‘enough already’ – you’re a PI not a realtor. Obviously, you know your territory. But as I continued reading, I understood that it wasn’t merely a pattern of the story but a much deeper understanding that he was sharing about people and the neighborhoods in which they live.

One of the segments of this book that I most enjoyed was John’s sharing his remembrances of a neighbor named Jim Douglas who was a “major force” in John’s life as he was growing up. The descriptions of conversations and times spent with Jim Douglas add a very poignant element to learning about John Darvelle. It gives the reader insight as to how John Darvelle emerged to become a man of specific tastes and a man that knows how to solve a case. Jim Douglas taught John how to fight and the true meaning of loyalty. There’s also a captivating portrayal of the qualities about people that “when pressure enters into a situation, when the element of tension enters, that’s when someone’s true personality emerges”. John’s recall of Jim’s advice is not only a comfort to him but it has given John a deeper understanding about people – actions, patterns, reactions – all of which give a private investigator a wealth of hidden resources to plan his next steps and solve his cases. Yes, John does have a network of connections to call as well but it would be a mistake to underestimate this private investigator.

I’d appreciate the opportunity to read about the next individual that asks John to solve a case. My guess is that John Darvelle could share more cases with us. Because the thing is, as John tells you about a case, he has an incredible talent for sharing ever so succinctly some other things about life. The things about life that some people will never figure out but really captured my attention because I’ve thought about them too. I hope you can pause and read the book yourself. I believe you will want to spend more time with John Darvelle too.

I was lucky enough to receive a pre-publication copy of this title from the TheReadingRoom and HaperCollins Publishers to read and review. ( )

Found as 2015 Shamus Award Finalist. BOOK not in Merlin. Sample available. ( )