Saratoga Bestiary (Charlie Bradshaw Series #5)

by Stephen Dobyns

Overview

Everyman detective Charlie Bradshaw and sidekick Victor Plotz dice with death in their fifth mystery in Saratoga Springs.

Gambling, an art heist and dog fighting collide in Charlie's latest case, which once more lands on his doorstep when his pal Victor's gambling party is robbed at the Bradshaw family hotel.

It's Super Bowl Sunday, and one of the five gamblers present at the party has an agenda beyond mere money - but who? And are they willing to kill to get what they want?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781405529402
Publisher:	Little, Brown Book Group
Publication date:	08/01/2013
Series:	Charlie Bradshaw Series , #5
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Sales rank:	814,477
File size:	691 KB

About the Author

Stephen Dobyns, author of eleven previous volumes of poetry and twenty novels, teaches in the MFA Writing Program at Warren Wilson College in North Carolina. He is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and three fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, as well as numerous other awards. His novels include the Charlie Bradshaw Mysteries, the bestselling thriller The Church of Dead Girls, and the acclaimed new novel, The Burn Palace.

Editorial Reviews

A group of mysteries in one, Saratoga Bestiary builds up smoothly to a truly savage ending. First, a painting of a famous racehorse is stolen, and private investigator Charlie Bradshaw (in his fifth outing) is hired to deliver the ransom money. The painting isn't returned, and Bradshaw, despite being asked to desist, investigates the theft. A shopkeeper he likes is murdered, and he plunges into the caseagain, unasked. He is, however, requested to investigate the robbery of friends during a Superbowl gambling party. And it's then that the story's theme, gambling, draws together many different people and clues. Busy with all the investigations, Bradshaw is always half a step behind his suspects. But this keeps the story engaging and the reader well-entertained. (Dec.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Dobyns returns to Charlie Bradshaw's Saratoga Springs ( Saratoga Snapper ), where a stolen painting of Man o' War, a heist from an illegal gambling party, and a murdered grocery store owner have something in common. While unearthing the intricate connectionsall of which lead to a very nasty villain who arranges pit bull dog fights and snuff videosCharlie ponders the ``difficulties'' of turning 50. The author handles this tangled web of gamblers and crooks with mastery, secure amidst well-established backdrops and series regulars. REK

Library Journal