The Devil's Own Rag Doll

by Mitchell Bartoy

Overview

1940's Detroit: the war effort is in full swing and racial tensions are running high. When a vivacious white heiress is murdered in the black part of town, the city threatens to erupt into mob violence, bringing the factories to a grinding halt and imperiling Allied forces around the world.

Newly minted Detective Pete Caudill is charged with covering up the crime in the interests of civic peace and finding some kind of justice for the dead girl. Odds are the girl was killed by her black boyfriend, but some whisper of an Axis plot to hamper America's war effort. Or is Detroit's shadowy political machine manipulating events to its own ruthless ends? As he delves deeper, Caudill soon learns the hard way that friends are rarely what they seem, family ties are often deceptive, and sometimes the bravest thing a man can do is think for himself.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781466839564
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	10/01/2005
Series:	Pete Caudill Series , #1
Sold by:	Macmillan
Format:	eBook
Pages:	304
File size:	347 KB

About the Author

Mitchell S. Bartoy was born in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, and has lived his entire life in the Detroit area. A graduate of Wayne State University in Detroit, he has worked in various capacities for the United States Postal Service and as a college writing teacher. He lives in St. Clair Shores, Michigan, with his wife and two children. The Devil's Own Rag Doll is his first novel.

Mitchell S. Bartoy was born in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, and has lived his entire life in the Detroit area. A graduate of Wayne State University in Detroit, he has worked in various capacities for the United States Postal Service and as a college writing teacher. He lives in Troy, Michigan, with his wife and two children. He is the author of the Pete Caudill Series, including The Devil's Own Rag Doll and The Devil’s Only Friend.

Editorial Reviews

here's not a false or dishonest note in this knockout debut novel that's both superb social history and cop-noir with intelligence and heart.
— The Washington Post

Richard Lipez

Set in Detroit during WWII, Bartov's fast-paced first novel will appeal to fans of hard-boiled noir. Det. Pete Caudill uses tough tactics to get information from snitches, but has a heart of gold when it comes to dead, violated teenage girls-in particular, an auto company big-shot's wayward daughter, whose body turns up in the black part of town. Capt. John Mitchell rides hard on Caudill and his partner, Bobby Swope, to solve the case, which takes the pair into Detroit's rough-slick underbelly. The victim's African-American boyfriend is implicated, but the roots of the murder may lie deeper. Historical references come fast and furious in the author's fevered attempts to evoke the time period. Sometimes the references work, and sometimes they don't. The same goes for the tough-guy dialogue, which alternates between convincing and forced. A maudlin ending underscores the book's unevenness. Still, Bartov remains a writer to watch. Agent, Andrea Somberg. (Oct.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

In 1940s Detroit, racial tensions pulse through the investigation of an heiress's murder. Rugged, eyepatch-wearing Pete Caudill, a beat cop recently promoted to detective, begins his tale on a hot June day in 1943. Pete and Bobby Swope, his new partner, have been ordered to find wild child Jane Hardiman, the young adult daughter of an influential Grosse Pointe industrialist. The cops have ignored or covered up Jane's many past excesses. She's recently been dating a small-time black criminal named Donny Pease. Pete stands uncomfortably by while Bobby attempts to beat information out of black informant Toby Thrumm. It's the first of many ethical dilemmas the new detective faces, not all because of his new job. He's falling a little in love with his brother Tommy's widow Eileen but worries about going any further for fear of confusing her young son Alex. And is it his place to say anything about Eileen's recent promiscuity? When the detectives find Jane's body in Pease's shabby apartment, it's only the beginning of a twisty probe that blurs the line between the professional and the personal. The addition of two patrolmen to the investigative team complicates matters for Pete, but not as much as Bobby's fatal shooting while chasing a suspect. The depth and sincerity that shine through Bartoy's sometimes overheated prose make this a promising debut.

Kirkus Reviews