His destination was Universal Studios. He only knew one person there, but it was an important person, at least to him. Liberty Callahan had left Bay Town more than two years ago. That was where Archer lived and worked with Willie Dash’s “very private” detective agency. Callahan had gone to Hollywood to make her dream come true in the land of make-believe. As far as he knew, she was still working on making the town believe in her.

I call this the "Full Marlowe" as this is very much Raymond Chandler territory in an old familiar setting and Baldacci is able to completely capture that ambiance. He even (perhaps intentionally?) mimics Chandler's sometimes confusing plotlines. The only thing keeping this out of 5 star territory is that Baldacci's similes and metaphors don't quite hit the peaks of Chandler's noir poetry, but then who will ever be able to do that? Baldacci's novels have been published in over 45 languages and in more than 80 countries, with over 130 million worldwide sales as of 2018. [9] Bibliography [ edit ] Sean King and Michelle Maxwell series [ edit ] In One Good Deed, bestselling and award-winning author David Baldacci introduced readers to Aloysius Archer, a World War II veteran who had just been released from prison for a crime he maintained he did not commit. He became embroiled in a murder mystery and helped solve the case. He so impressed the lead detective, Irving Shaw, that Shaw recommended Archer to his buddy, Willie Dash, who once worked with Eliot Ness. As A Gambling Man, the second book in the series, opened, Archer was on his way to Bay Town, California, to take advantage of Shaw’s generosity and convince Dash to give him a chance. Along the way, Archer found plenty of trouble, as well as Liberty Callahan, a Reno nightclub performer with dreams of making it big in Hollywood. Finally arriving in Bay Town, Archer became Dash’s apprentice and his relationship with Liberty grew closer.Connie Morrison was Willie Dash’s ex-wife and current secretary. They needed each other far more now than when they were married. Willie was a first-rate investigator and had taught Archer more in three years than a man had any right to expect. The prose is vivid and smooth. The characters are loyal, determined, and brave. And the plot is a well-paced, twisty whodunit full of red herrings, sleuthing, suspicious personalities, deduction, attraction, coercion, danger, mayhem, mischief, and murder.

Archer is an old friend from Bay Town, just up the coast. He put his detective work aside for one night to ring in the new year with me.” Baldacci began writing stories as a child, when his mother gave him a notebook in which to record them. [2] He wrote for more than two decades, penning short stories and later screenplays without much success. [3]

Dream Town

Interestingly Archer is forced to ponder his mortality here and I’m trying to remember if he was as conscious of his fallibility in A Gambling Man. In many ways it’s refreshing to have someone consider the threat to their life without the usual bravado. It brings with it a sense of realism. And here – after the second near miss – Dash asks Archer if he’s willing to keep putting his life on the line and there’s a reminder that when someone’s heart is no longer in something they put themselves (and others) at risk. Lamb swiveled around and laid a look on Archer that he had seen plenty of times before, just not in that particular shade of jarring green wrapped with framed portholes. Archer catches a new client at a New Year’s Eve bash, Eleanor, she then disappears and never paid Archer, so is she really a client? Soon there’s a murder victim, shady cops and Archer is chasing answers. There is glitz and glamour with a seedy underbelly of bent cops, mobsters and drugs. His friend Liberty Callahan is still trying to become a star in Hollywood, like scores of others. Their relationship suffers as he takes too many risks. His dangerous lifestyle is too much for her. Some people refer to me by my initials,” explained Callahan. “Ellie is a screenwriter. The first movie I worked on here was one of her scripts. It was a United Artists film. Where are you now?” The waitress presented Lamb with her glass of sherry and bitters with a curlicue orange peel apparently for window dressing. Archer didn’t know anyone who really drank sherry unless they had to, but he thought he might just be hanging out with the wrong crowd.

Baldacci was a consulting producer on King & Maxwell, a TNT television series based on his characters Sean King and Michelle Maxwell. Jon Tenney and Rebecca Romijn starred. The LA setting is wonderfully described and made it easy to visualise all the exotic cars and the beautiful homes of the Hollywood stars. There was plenty of name dropping too - so many greats were around in the early fifties. Highly recommended and no real need to read the earlier two books although it is probably more fun if you do. The next thing Archer knows is Lamb has gone missing, and a body is found in her home. Archer feels out of his element as he must ask many of Lamb’s wealthy friends for information. However, they are less than helpful and in fact bring even more confusion to the mystery of Lamb’s whereabouts. Through many twists and turns in the plot, Archer must find out where Lamb went and who killed the man found in her home. While doing his job, Archer is finding out how he really feels about Callahan and if they do indeed have a future as a couple. Los Angeles. It is New Year’s Eve and PI Aloysius Archer is dining with his friend and rising Hollywood actress Liberty Callahan when they’re approached by Eleanor Lamb, a screenwriter who would like to hire him – as she suspects someone is trying to kill her. What I did, Archer, is between me, myself, and I.” She looked wistful, which she almost never did. “But I hear TV is really taking off,” she said. “Maybe I should think about trying that.”

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Gresham, Tom (December 11, 2019). "David Baldacci once wrote stories in secret at VCU. Now he has millions of readers around the world". Virginia Commonwealth University. Callahan was among the stragglers, and Archer’s face lit up when he saw her. Sometimes it seemed that the only redeeming quality in this whole city came down to this woman, at least for him. He gave her a look that perhaps hoped to compel a deeper answer to his statement than was warranted under the circumstances, only the lady didn’t bite. He passed buildings that were intricately cut into the city’s steep grade and looked lopsided and unrooted as a result. The roots here were always shallow, never deep. Deep required commitment, and there was none to be had here, at least that Archer could see.

All that glitters is not gold in the movie world as Archer finds out. In fact, it has quite the dark side to it and if light were to shine, many a celebrity would be ruined. Archer doesn’t care to bring the light, just hopefully find Lamb alive and if possible, help someone out of a tight spot. With a web of mystery, murder and intrigue, Archer delves into the depravity with the hopes of living through a cesspool of villains out to protect their evil empire no matter the cost. It’s the eve of 1953, and Aloysius Archer is in Los Angeles to ring in the New Year with an old friend, aspiring actress Liberty Callahan, when their evening is interrupted by an acquaintance of Callahan’s: Eleanor Lamb, a screenwriter in dire straits. In addition to being a prolific writer, David is a devoted philanthropist, and his greatest efforts are dedicated to his family’s Wish You Well Foundation®. Established by David and his wife, Michelle, the Wish You Well Foundation supports family and adult literacy programs in the United States.

Freddy and the French Fries: Fries Alive! ( Little, Brown and Company, 2005), Baldacci's debut novel for young readers Dream Town is the third book in the Archer series, and if you love mysteries set in the glitz and glamour of 1950s Tinseltown, this one won’t disappoint. It’s an intricate, tight, satisfying read by Baldacci, and I can’t wait to read whatever this steadfast gumshoe gets himself tied up in next. Archer had had a police baton or two land on his head, and he’d also spent time in the tank on bogus charges merely for asking questions deemed impertinent, meaning ones directed at finding the truth, because the truth often found LAPD badges mixed in with the other crooks. Ain’t a problem, sir. Mr. Cary Grant’s got him a right-handdrive Rolls. Jimmy over there knows how to handle the thing.” They walked along arm in arm. They passed what Archer thought looked like Rin Tin Tin taking a piss on a poor bum trapped in a cheap suit of studio armor.