Private Detective, Jack Laramie,
is back in another gritty fast moving tale that is also very good. First seen
in The
Drifter Detective Jack makes his money by drifting from city to city
across Texas doing work as a private detective while living out of the horse
trailer he tows with his Desoto. Having wrapped up the current case after discovering
the real truth of the matter the grandson of legendary US Marshal Cash Laramie
is headed to Galveston to deal with a client as Hell Up in Houston opens.
That mission is temporarily stopped thanks to mechanical problems with the old
Desoto requiring him to stay for at least a few nights at “The Fulton” in
Houston.
Jack had no desire to be back in Houston as the last time he was in Houston things did not go well. He also didn’t want to stay at “The Fulton” either. However, it is clear the Desoto is going to be at the garage awhile, the horse trailer is miles back on the side of the road awaiting its own tow truck pickup, and he really has no choice. “The Fulton” has a bit of a less than stellar reputation as well, but Jack doesn't care as the place has air conditioning. In 1946 Houston, Texas as now air conditioning is all that truly matters.
He also soon learns the
place also has a house detective by the name of Frank Grogan. Frank wants him
to do some work for him and will pay him a decent amount of money for a few
days of work. Considering the repair bill for the Desoto, Jack doesn't really
have a choice. Besides, Frank said the work should be easy. If Jack keeps his head
down and goes about his business quietly with no one wiser that he is in town everything
should be easy.
Frank lied.
This latest installment in
the series is another good one. Reminiscent of the hard boiled pulp of yesteryear,
Jack Laramie is a man's man who gets his hands and boots dirty which fighting
the good fight. As in the preceding book, the read here has plenty of action,
deceitful characters, and a twisting storyline to keep readers very
entertained. You certainly don't have to read the very good The
Drifter Detective before reading Hell Up in Houston but, I recommend
doing so. You won’t regret it.
Hell Up In Houston: A Jack
Laramie Beat
Garnett Elliott
Beat To A Pulp
September 2013
ASIN: B00F565UP4
Kindle E-Book
Approximately 57 Pages (includes
author bio and ads for other books)
$1.09
Material supplied by David Cranmer
in exchange for my objective review.
If you have not read my review of The Drifter
Detective you can read it here.
Kevin R Tipple ©2013
2 comments:
Thanks for the thoughtful review, Kevin. I appreciate you taking a look at the Drifter series.
Enjoyed both of them very much. My reviews don't do the books justice.
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