David Levien

Today I finished David Levien's Where the Dead Lay, the second of his books I have read, the first being City of the Sun, which was good enough to lead me to seek out more. You will find out that I devour detective stories and my all-time favorites features the rugged and sensitive Travis McGee, whose adventures on his houseboat The Busted Flush unfortunately ended with the death of author John McDonald back in the 90's. All of his McGee books, and there were many, have a color in the title, e.g. The Lonely Silver Rain, and can be found in libraries and used books sales. He is worth looking for.

Levien's PI is Frank Behr, a former cop tortured with guilt over his part in the death of his young son. This book opens with the murder of his friend and mentor, Aurelio Santos, in his martial arts studio. Behr, of course, determines to track down the killers and finds them a strange and violent crew. He continues to battle his own demons, particularly his feelings when his young girlfriend becomes pregnant. I also learned what a "pea shake" operation is. Anybody else know?

I'm now looking for Levien's first two novels, and not just because the photo on his book jacket is very cute.