To Catch A Spy

An Otto Penzler Book





















Written by Stuart M. Kaminsky

Copyright © 2002 by Stuart M. Kaminsky



In Stuart M. Kaminsky's To Catch A Spy,  private investigator to the movie stars Toby Peters takes on a case for actor Cary Grant which involves Nazi sympathizers secretly operating in Hollywood.

After the exciting opening scenes with Toby's client Grant - of which the scenes reminded me of the final scenes from the movie North By NorthWest - I was waiting for the scenes that lead up to that dramatic point of the story at the beginning of the book, since after the opening scenes the book goes back to how Toby got started on this case. Cary Grant is being blackmailed and goes and asks Toby to meet his blackmailer at a park - where the person Toby is supposed to meet gets shot. Now Toby must find the person mentioned in the dying man's words. Soon Toby's friends, inept dentist Shelly Minck, wrestler/poet Jerry Butler, and Swiss little person Gunther Wherthman discover a Nazi link to a University.

Pancho
All people smile in the same language.

The Devil Met A Lady

ibooks

DISTRIBUTED BY SIMON & SHUSTER, INC

Copyright © 1993, 2000 Stuart M. Kaminsky

Afterword copyright © 2000 Stuart M. Kaminsky

In The Devil Met A Lady, written by Stuart M. Kaminsky and set during Hollywood's Golden Age, private investigator Toby Peters must protect actress Bette Davis from being kidnapped by a spy ring trying to get top secret plans from her husband.

While reading this book, I kept picturing Bette Davis as the girl on the cover instead of how the real Bette Davis looks - which shows how important a cover can be. Davis can be seen at the servicemen-only Hollywood Canteen, which Davis managed during World War II. Toby is just as funny as always, and his police detective brother hates Toby as always. The spy ring is practically comic relief so, despite their violence and guns, it is hard to take them too seriously. The sad part is the seriousness of Toby's sister-in-law's medical condition. Toby and his brother's relationship becomes civil when relating to Toby's sister-in-law, which shows their concern for her. I hope to see Toby's sister-in-law being well in future books. Having Davis vist Toby's sister-in-law in the hospital was a rather poignant touch.

Pancho

All people smile in the same language.