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June
26, 2005
Thrilling
Detective
James
P. Hillton
Created by Andrew McAleer
"James P. Hilton could have
gotten fat on Wall Street with his
old man, but like most rebellious
Harvard boys, he became a private
investigator instead. This is his
story." -- the opening of Double
Endorsement
 Lock
the doors, here comes trouble.
Slacker private eye JAMES
P. HILLTON and high-priced
Boston shyster Madeleine
V. LaCroix are a mismatched
detecting duo that more than one sharp-eyed
critic has compared -- and usually
favourably -- to none other than Nero
Wolfe and Archie Goodwin.
Hillton (two ls, please) and LaCroix
have a peculiar relationship -- they
bicker, they crack wise, they argue,
they get on each other's nerves, they
occasionally flirt (despite the fact
she's a good thirty years older) and,
oh yeah, somehow they usually manage
to crack the case and see that justice
is done.
James is more than a little quirky.
He's laidback, a joker and a pun-lover,
something of a disappointment to his
old man. He'd rather play hockey (defense),
crack wise or even just sit and drink
organic green tea (his latest kick)
than actually work. Definitely a march-to-his-own-drum
kind of guy. But prodded into action
(usually by Madeleine), he gets results.
He's not quite the doofus he appears
to be. And his partner, the drop-dead
gorgeous Sophia Blossom, isn't quite
the blonde ditz she first appears
to be either.
Meanwhile, Madeleine is ambitious
and predatory, a sharp-eyed (and possibly
sharp-toothed), high-flying attorney
with a swank office in prestigious
Fox Club Building in Copley Square,
who knows what she wants and will
do what it takes to get it. She's
constantly calling on Hillton to go
forth and do battle on behalf of her
clients.
Their initial appearance, in 2003's
Double Endorsement, is a punchy
little romp, smart and savvy, a surprisingly
brisk and literate little gem full
of wit and humour. It could well be
the start of a great series. I'm keeping
my fingers crossed -- in these days
of bloated, four and five hundred
page mysteries that plod on slower
than the continental drift, it's a
genuine pleasure to see someone get
in and get out in less than 200 pages,
and still manage to tell a great story.
In fact, Hillton and Sophia did indeed
return, in Bait
and Switch in 2005.
A lawyer himself, author Andrew McAleer
is also the author of Appearance
of Counsel, and the editor
of Crimestalker
Casebook. An active member
of the Private Eye Writers of America
and the Mystery Writers of America,
his work has appeared in numerous
mystery publications His legal essays
include a critical analysis of the
Lizzie Borden Grand Jury and the History
of Suffolk Law School. He is the 2003
winner of the Speckled Band's Sherlock
Holmes Revere Bowl Award.
And the undeniable Rex Stout influences
on Hillton and LaCroix come naturally.
Andrew's father, John McAleer, was
the author of the much-acclaimed biography
Rex Stout:
A Majesty's Life (1977).
UNDER OATH
"An intricate and original
private eye mystery. Andrew McAleer's
Double Endorsement grips the reader's
attention from start to finish and
is one of the most humorous novels
I've read in a long, long time. A
wit and pace reminiscent of P.G. Wodehouse."
(Robin Moore, author of The French
Connection)
Report respectfully submitted by
Kevin
Burton Smith.
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