Death in North Beach : a Carly Paladino and Noah Lang mystery

The second book in the new Paladino and Lang mystery series from the author of the Deets Shanahan mysteries - Sweet William, a professional companion to the wealthy, needs help. A famous, but not beloved, novelist is found dead, and William is the prime suspect. His only recourse is for the real murderer to be found. Working from an impressive list of suspects, all whose secrets were to be revealed in the victim’s unpublished tell-all memoir, Carly Paladino and Noah Lang stir up serious trouble on their hunt for the missing manuscript – and the murderer. Publishers Weekly San Francisco PIs Carly Paladino and Noah Lang, who teamed in Tierney's Death in Pacific Heights (2009), try to solve the murder of aging novelist Whitney Warfield, ironically slain by a fountain pen, in this lackluster follow-up. Gigolo William Blake, who was seen arguing with Warfield the night the writer was killed, hires Paladino and Lang to clear his name. Blake provides a list of 12 people who might have feared the revelations Warfield planned to make in a tell-all book, including, besides Warfield's son, wife, and mistress, a number of artistic types with ties to North Beach's beat past. Alibis and unnatural deaths narrow the suspect list. In the end, Paladino orchestrates a clumsy and contrived showdown of suspects and police in a restaurant back room to expose the guilty. Tierney makes good use of North Beach's rich history, but it's not enough to redeem this pedestrian effort. (Feb.) An upscale gigolo believes the only way he won't be the prime suspect in the murder of a famous novelist is for the real murderer to be found. At least that's what his handsome and secretive fellow tells San Francisco private investigator Carly Paladino. She takes the case. Did she believe him or fall under his spell? Her new client also provides a handy list of "suspects" he says he received from the victim himself. Carly and her streetwise and skeptical partner, Noah Lang, stir up serious trouble when they try to find the victim's as yet unpublished tell-all manuscript. Much like Noah Beach itself, the suspects are trying to preserve the image they want the world to see. And it seems one death is not enough to conceal some inconvenient truths--Publisher's description An upscale gigolo believes the only way he won't be the prime suspect in the murder of a famous novelist is for the real murderer to be found. At least that's what his handsome and secretive fellow tells San Francisco private investigator Carly Paladino. She takes teh case. Did she believe him or fall under his spell? Her new client also provides a handy list of "suspects" he says he received from the victim himself. Carly and her streetwise and skeptical partner, Noah Lang, stir up serious trouble when they try to find the victim's as yet unpublished tell-all manuscript. Much like Noah Beach itself, the suspects are trying to preserve the image they want the world to see. And it seems one death is not enough to conceal some inconvenient truths--Publisher's description