Aubrey Hamilton Reviews: The Blues Don’t Care by Paul D. Marks

The Blues Don’t Care (Down & Out Books, 2020) by Paul D. Marks is the first title in his new historical mystery series featuring Bobby Saxon. Set in Los Angeles during World War II, it is an absorbing glimpse of a time and place where Hollywood’s overriding presence pushed the ongoing international crisis to the back of daily consciousness. The sight of service members in uniform on leave or on their way to their next assignment, a gold star in a window, the headlines of the newspaper served as reminders but largely everyone is taken up with the entertainment industry and finding their place in it.

Bobby Saxon is no different. He loves big band music and considers a place in a band the most wonderful job anyone could have. He plays a mean piano and quite accidentally is offered a temporary spot in the premier black band of the time. He is in seventh heaven, even though being the only white member of a black band is not an enviable position in racially charged Los Angeles. His bubble of happiness explodes quickly, when a couple of suspected Nazis and known racists are killed at the club where the band is playing, and a member of the band is arrested. The police have no real reason to arrest the man, it’s just he’s black and there, and they can mark the case solved.

The leader of the band Booker Taylor tells Bobby he can have a permanent place with the band if he finds the real killer and Booker gets his sax man back. Bobby knows nothing about being a private investigator but jumps in at the deep end. He attends all of the private detective movie showings he can find to learn what his next steps should be. He meets the police detective in charge of the inquiry and researches the background of the victim. Along the way he meets the gangster Tony Leach who owns the club where the murder took place. Leach isn’t happy about being closed down due the police investigation and decides not to be offended by Bobby approaching him. Their interactions are entertaining. Bobby knows he’s sticking his head into an alligator’s mouth but he is convinced Leach knows something that could help him.

This story has a number of surprises in it and a complexity that is hard to convey in a brief review. It is redolent of the era and offers perceptive insights into race, gender and identity, all relevant to the present day. The mystery itself is well done with a clue here and a clue there as Bobby puts the pieces together. I know this book is supposed to be the first of a series although I don’t quite see how a sequel might be set up. However, Marks is clearly a creative guy so I will be happy to wait and see. In the meantime this atmospheric, well-crafted book is highly recommended.

·         File Size: 1688 KB

·         Print Length: 396 pages

·         Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited

·         Publisher: Down & Out Books (June 1, 2020)

·         Publication Date: June 1, 2020

·         Sold by: Amazon.com Services LLC

·         Language: English

·         ASIN: B083H2T78G

Aubrey Hamilton ©2020

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.