But what if a best-selling and award-winning novelist decides to write and sell a series on his own? That is another kettle of fish entirely.  Which brings us to Timothy Hallinan‘s Junior Bender series.

I am a huge fan of his Poke Rafferty series and so was interested to see how he handled this new series available only in the electronic format.  The first book, Crashed, was great fun so I was hoping the second would cement that reaction and mean another series to enjoy.

Well, Little Elvises didn’t let me down. It was another enjoyable romp through Los Angeles with a memorable cast of characters, Hallinan’s dry and wry sense of humor, and a twisting plot that leaves you rushing to figure out the mystery at the heart of the story.

Hallinan descirbes the story this way:

[A] Los Angeles thriller-with-a-laugh-track about old-time rock-and-roll, the Philly mob, missing persons, the world’s oldest still-dangerous gangster, and a terrifying if somewhat hapless hit man named Fronts.  And a whole bunch of other stuff.

In Little Elvises everyone’s favorite burglar Junior Bender is caught between a rock and hard place. Police Detective Paulie threatens to frame Junior for a job he didn’t do unless he cooperates and helps get Uncle Vinnie out from under a murder rap. A tabloid reporter was killed and dumped on the walk of fame and the blame is pointing to Vinnie; mostly because he foolishly talked about wanting to have the reporter killed.  Junior usually tries to avoid anything involving murder but Paulie is quite pursuasive.

The case leads Bender to dig into the history of “Little Elvises” – a seemingly never ending stream of Elvis Presley clones seeking to piggyback on the famous crooner’s success. It turns out Vinnie was involved in finding these kids, getting their faces on TV and pushing their albums as far as the screaming girls would carry them (rinse, repeat, profit).

As usual, questions begin to pile up: is Vinnie mobbed up? What exactly was involved in the move from Philly to Hollywood? What happened to one particular Little Elvis that seemingly disappeared into thin air during his brief moment of fame? What is Vinnie doing in LA now that the Little Elvis production line is done?

To make things interesting Junior’s hotel landlady’s daughter is missing and might just be married to a serial killer.  Oh, and the murder victim’s wife is incredibly attractive, not all that distressed about her husband’s murder and a little hazy about her past. Of course, Junior is falling for her which means an interesting conversation with his teenage daughter. Who by the way has started dating.

Hallinan packs a lot of characters into these stories. There are a lot of plot lines and side stories but I think he pulls it off. The characters are part of the scenery. And Hallinan uses the multiple plot lines and stories to  both keep the reader guessing and to set the pace. This is Junior’s life, complex and sometimes even dangerous; full of twists and turns and “tangles” as he calls them. But, as he beings to realize, he likes it that way – it may seem cliche but it makes him feel alive.

For the reader, the result is an entertaining mix of humor, hard-boiled detective story and LA noir.  Junior Bender joins Poke Rafferty and Simeon Grist as Hallinan characters sure to have a cult following.  Add in the fact that this funny suspenseful novel is only three bucks and you have a winning combination.

Hallinan is on my must read list, if for some odd reason he isn’t on yours I recommend you get started. Of course, if you just need an inexpensive but entertaining novel to read on your Kindle or Nook the Junior Bender series is a great choice (but you really should read the Poke Rafferty series as well).

Related articles

• Book Review: Little Elvises by Timothy Hallinan (blogcritics.org)

Here is the official blurb:

Crashed, the first book in the new series from the author of the Simeon Grist Mysteries and the Poke Rafferty Bangkok Thrillers, introduces Junior Bender, a top-of-the-line burglar who also works as a private eye – for crooks. When a crook gets ripped off by a crook, Junior is the guy who gets hired. In his first outing, Crashed, Junior finds himself on the wrong side of his own already paper-thin moral code, being forced to prevent sabotage against a multi-million dollar porn film starring exactly the kind of person he’d normally want to protect.

At the age of 23, Thistle Downing is broke, strung-out, semi-suicidal, and on the verge of obscurity. But between the ages of eight and fifteen, she was the biggest television star in the world, a brilliant natural comedian until her talent slowly began to desert her. Now desperate, she’s facing the ultimate humiliation . . . and she’s so wasted she doesn’t even know that someone’s been trying to kill her. And in between her and all that, there’s no one – except Junior.

Crashed turned out to be a fun fast paced mystery with the typical Hallinan humor and style. A lead character who while outside the law and normal cultural mores has his own strong sense of right and wrong – and a fierce determination to go his own way.

The first chapter is hillarious and really pulls you into the story. From that point on there are regular twists and turns. Just when you think you have a handle on things something changes. By the end you are reading frantically trying to see how Junior pulls it all off.

The other thing that makes it fun is all the side characters and their interaction with Junior and the plot. Just as Hallinan takes you on a tour of Bangkok and Thailand with his Poke Rafferty series, he uses Junior to paint a picture of a certain side of LA and Hollywood.

You get to know Junior and the background to his chosen career path which sets up the series moving forward. But you also get an interesting portrait of a child TV start caught up fame and success; and like so many in real life she wasn’t able to handle it.

And of course there are numerous side characters and bit players with quirky personalities and unique voices.  All this adds to the quirky tone and feel to this hard to label romp. It is sort of Hollywood noir with a twist.

Not having read the earlier Simeon Grist Mysteries I am not sure how this new series compares. But fans of Poke will enjoy Junionr and vice a versa I would think.

I look forward to seeing how this new series plays out.

Related articles

• The Queen of Patpong by Timothy Hallinan (collectedmiscellany.com)

Publishers Weekly

Depp skewers the film industry with relish in his brilliantly comic follow-up to Loser’s Town (2009). PI David Spandau, who specializes in serving Hollywood’s elite, takes on the unenviable task of guarding aging actress Anna Mayhew, “Oscar winner and onetime tabloid fodder,” whose career is in decline, but she’s still glamorous enough to have attracted a stalker, weirdo Vincent Perec. Spandau, a rugged ex-rodeo rider and former Hollywood stunt man, reluctantly agrees to accompany the sexy, foul-mouthed Mayhew to Cannes, where she’s to serve as a judge at the famous film festival. Sharply drawn supporting characters, including Special, an opera loving pimp, and a slew of movie stars, agents, and directors, enliven the lavish, ludicrous events at Cannes. Fans of Elmore Leonard‘s Get Shorty should enjoy Depp’s clever complications and witty capers at least as much.

From the Publisher

Private investigator David Spandau, an ex-stuntman familiar with the ins and outs of Hollywood—a smart, tough, and wickedly funny observer of la vie L.A.—finds his patience almost sapped when he’s hired to protect actor Bobby Dye from a blackmailing scheme gone wrong. Dye—young, brash, and on the verge of becoming a major star—has been set up by gangster Richie Stella, a nightclub owner and drug dealer with dreams of becoming a Hollywood producer. And he has a movie perfect for Dye. Problem is, it’s the worst script anyone’s ever read. But Richie is not easy to say no to, and when he retaliates, the game becomes deadly for more than a few of its players.

Charged with the elements of all great L.A. noir&crackling dialogue, fast-paced plot, and seedy, jaded characters—Loser’s Town is a deftly written thriller and a gruesomely hilarious depiction of what goes on beneath those white letters on the mountainside.