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January/February
2004
The Colonial Times Magazine
Local
Author Andy McAleer Publishes New
Mystery
By Laurie Atwater
Andy McAleer is at it again! This
time he takes a crack at the puzzle/malice
domestic mystery with his new book
Double Endorsement. Once again he
draws heavily on his experiences in
Boston west to create a colorful cast
of characters who sally back and forth
between comic moments and clue dropping
to keep you entertained. "When
you do a puzzle mystery, a couple
of words can get you off on the wrong
track. It has to work; it has to be
logical. To engage the reader in fair
play you have to give them all of
the clues," Andy says. There
should be nothing gratuitous in the
puzzle-type mystery," McAleer
explains.
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| Andy McAleer
with friend and mentor Robin Moore
at a book signing in Lexington
Center. |
Whodunit is the
obvious question, but it begins in an
unlikely way—with a confession,
of sorts.
Nurse Virginia Doyle comes to a Boston
attorney to fess-up in a mini-insurance
fraud that she is sure led to the murder
of the insured's wife. What's her angle?
She has fudged an insurance exam at
the request of the husband and now fears
that she gave him the motive for murder—a
hefty insurance payout. Our attorney
Madeline V. La Croix, a savvy
working gal, and her associate James
P. Hillton, our protagonist and sometime
P.I., get to work on a case with more
than a few twists and turns. "She's
a professional woman who is able to
take on the bad guys, or the D.A. or
the police. She's someone to reckon
with."
McAleer spent some time in the healthcare
and insurance game so he knows how to
write the typical phone call to an insurance
company and the shenanigans involved
as they sniff out the truth. Hillton
the protagonist is a little bit of a
con man when he's trying to get information.
"He doesn't sit around and think
too much... he knows how to get information."
Andy likes the small town mystery, but
he doesn't write the cozy-style of book.
He reveals his love for the little details
of community life as he describes the
scenes around Arlington Heights, Waltham,
Concord and Brighton with homely details
and more than a few wisecracks. Our
protagonist has a penchant for bumper
stickers and we are amused by his many
observations throughout his travels
in his GMC Envoy. "He's no dummy—he's
a real Joe, but he can turn on the intellect
when he wants to. He doesn't need any
great wealth to express who he is—he
just is who he is. The back story is
that Hillton's parents don't exactly
like the fact that he is spending his
life being a P.I. since he's a Harvard
grad."
Speaking of higher education, one of
the characters in the book is a professor
from Chestnut Hill College (a thinly
disguised Boston College) for which
McAleer has great affection. Andy's
father, John McAleer, who passed away
recently, taught at the college and
Andy has taken on his teaching tradition
by teaching his Dad's Master Sleuth
course at B.C. "Just be surrounded
by this material for literally all my
life, has really influenced me. It's
like I'm carrying on the tradition,"
he says.
Because Hillton is a P.I., McAleer has
used the nifty little device of having
him debrief the case periodically into
his micro cassette recorder for the
benefit of his boss, Ms. LaCroix. The
reader follows along with the clues
(as Hillton sees it) and gets the opportunity
to mentally solve the puzzle. Just a
word about Hillton's sidekick Sophia.
She wasn't supposed to survive the first
couple of chapters of the book, but
McAleer felt guilty getting her fired
by LaCroix and putting her out on the
street to starve, so he had Hillton
hire her as his sidekick and it was
a great move! Sophia Blossom (she unfurls
as the book progresses) steals the show.
A little bit flighty, Sophia hasn't
quite found her niche in life, but she's
smart and a smart aleck so she's perfect
for the sleuthing game. Hillton uses
her gender to his advantage having her
take on several phone personas that
are a hoot to read. "People liked
Reva Smith who was the female detective
in my last book and her character was
developed from a male character. I like
to write about strong women characters.
I'm the youngest of six," he says.
The three oldest in the family are his
three sisters and Andy says they all
know how to roll-up their sleeves. "My
mother had six kids. She taught at Bedford
High School and founded the business
law department. In many respects she
was the go-to person in our home."
No wonder Sophia is strong and sassy.
At dialogue, McAleer shines. Andy did
an interview with the Arlington Advocate
and a woman from Studio City, who apparently
grew up in Arlington Heights had read
the article and inquired about the film
rights. Needless to say, McAleer was
ecstatic!" I talked with Robin
Moore (fellow author and best known
for The French Connection and The Green
Berets), who has given me lots of help
with my writing and also taught screenwriting
at Harvard, and I asked him if he would
help with the screenplay. He said, 'sure!'"
Ironically his niece Molly (who's Mom
is Andy's sister Seana McAleer owner
of Occasional Helpers in Lexington)
is studying film at Boston College and
took a screenwriting course last semester.
"We have the rough draft done and
my friend John Shepherd (I Saw Mommy
Kissing Santa Clause for PAX TV) who
is a director out in Hollywood, is going
to take a look at it."
Now he has created a screenplay for
the book with the help of his old pal
and mentor Robin Moore and his film-student
niece, Molly McAleer. It's in the hands
of John Shepherd and he has his fingers
crossed. Andy's next book is in the
hands of his publisher. You can pick
up a copy of 'Double Endorsement' at
Sundial Books. |
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