HARD-BOILED MYSTERIES
 
 



BOOK REVIEW by E.Borgers
 
FORBIDDEN HOLLYWOOD
-by William Prendergast

Cole Dixon Publishing, Minnesota
Publication date: August 15, 2002
 

===================================== Review by E.Borgers 
=====================================

You are not bad in your trade and you hope for better returns. But one day your contact tries the flight of the angel, from the 12th story that's a one-shot you know, and suddenly your "art photos" are worthless, and suddenly Boston becomes too small for you... you the extortionist and your client's corpse.
So, California here you come. 
It's still the Depression days of the thirties, but the West is full of promises especially for an entrepreneur with daring marketing methods.
 

In LA, Hart or whatever is his name-temporary or real-contacts his pal Sam who should know about opportunities. Tough Sam, an ex-small time cowboy in the old western movies, is not in a very good situation, selling tours to see  houses of stars in Hollywood. But he is very happy to meet his crooked young friend as he had seen something interesting happening at the residence of Stacey Tilden, a famous cinema star at the peak of her glory. 
What Hart will discover after an incursion at her residence will be bigger than his wildest dreams, and he can already smell the heap of dollars he could receive from Miss Tilden in order to keep her little secret quiet in the jar where it lies. But Hart, even as much of a wise guy  he thinks he is, will find the ways in which the star and her studio will handle his request rather tough. And him and Sam. But hey, this is Hollywood, and only the fully rotten ones survive, and they can make you regret hell...

Forbidden Hollywood, with its story told in the first person, is largely humorous throughout, and has some very funny parts in the Donald Westlake vein.
The whole story, however, maintains a smart aleck tone, making it fully a part of the traditional hard-boiled territory. Black humor also runs throughout the story, especially at the end, which has a dark conclusion. Perhaps some padding of the plot could be trimmed to not distract too much from the main storyline, but this padding isn't excessive that it detracts from our interest.  

The whole novel is a good read, a traditional hard-boiled novel with the necessary mixture of mystery, suspense, and tough characters, not forgetting the very pleasant writing style of William Prendergast and an effective humor both being not the least of the ingredients that make Forbidden Hollywood appealing.

A second novel by Prendergast is announced and we really look forward to it.

E.Borgers - 14 July 2002
Copyright © 2002, E.Borgers


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Most recent revision: 14 July, 2002
 


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