Hollywood's Detectives


Book Description

The study of Hollywood detectives has often overlooked the B-Movie mystery series in favour of hard-boiled film. Hollywood's Detectives redresses this oversight by examining key detective series of the 1930s and 1940s to explore their contributions to the detective genre.




Hollywood Homicide


Book Description

Winner of the 2018 Anthony Award for Best First Novel Winner of the 2017 Agatha Award for Best First Novel Also a Lefty Award Winner and a Barry Award-Nominated Title The Surprise Hit of the Season! Actress Dayna Anderson's Deadly New Role: Homicide Detective Dayna Anderson doesn't set out to solve a murder. All the semifamous, mega-broke actress wants is to help her parents keep their house. So after witnessing a deadly hit-and-run, she pursues the fifteen grand reward. But Dayna soon finds herself doing a full-on investigation, wanting more than just money—she wants justice for the victim. She chases down leads at paparazzi hot spots, celeb homes, and movie premieres, loving every second of it—until someone tries to kill her. And there are no second takes in real life. Praise: "[A] winning first novel and series launch...Garrett writes with humor and insight about the Hollywood scene. Readers will look forward to Day's further adventures."—Publishers Weekly (starred review) "A smart, sassy debut, introducing an appealing protagonist with amusing friends."—Library Journal (starred review) and Debut of the Month "Veteran TV writer Garrett uses her Cold Case experience to inform her debut, which sets up more than one charming character and isn't afraid to go cynical on all things LA."—Kirkus Reviews "Funny, lively characters populate this new Detective by Day series...this will be an entertaining entry into the amateur sleuth genre."—RT Book Reviews "Fun, smart, endearingly flawed, and impressively determined, Dayna Anderson is a heroine readers will fall in love with...I relished every unexpected twist and turn of this highly entertaining mystery!"—Kyra Davis, New York Times bestselling author




Hollywood Ending


Book Description

And the award goes to... ...Dayna Anderson, the semi-famous actress turned PI who steps up her sleuthing swagger in this follow-up to breakout hit Hollywood Homicide, winner of the Lefty Award and the Agatha Award for Best First Novel! Tinseltown's awards season is in full swing, and everyone is obsessed with dressing up, scoring free swag, and getting invited to the biggest awards shows of the year. But when celebrity publicist Lyla Davis is killed, the festive mood comes to an abrupt halt. Apprentice private eye Dayna Anderson thinks she's uncovered the killer. Unfortunately, what starts as an open-and-shut case turns out to be anything but. Diving deeper into the investigation, Dayna gets a backstage look at gossip blogging, Hollywood royalty, and one of entertainment's most respected awards shows—all while trying to avoid her own Hollywood ending. Praise for Hollywood Ending: A 2019 Lefty Award Nominee Named Best of 2018 by Suspense Magazine "Garrett continues to build an appealingly quirky crime-solving team."—Kirkus Reviews "Garrett, who wrote for TV's Cold Case, brings a smart insider's view of contemporary Hollywood to this lighthearted series."—Publishers Weekly "Fans of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series will feel right at home."—Library Journal "Day's funny and determined, the sort of woman who really WOULD make a wisecrack when faced with danger."—Donna Andrews, New York Times bestselling author of the Meg Langslow series "Kellye Garrett's Hollywood Ending glitters with stardust. A fun, fast-paced mystery, it's definitely an A-lister."—Elaine Viets, author of the Dead-End Job mysteries "Fasten your seatbelts. A star is born!"—Nancy Martin, author of the Blackbird Sisters mysteries "An entertaining whodunit that provides readers a peek behind Hollywood's star-studded curtain."—Diane Kelly, award-winning author Praise for Hollywood Homicide: Winner of the 2018 Agatha Award for Best First Novel Winner of the 2018 Anthony Award for Best First Novel Winner of the 2018 Lefty Award for Best Debut Winner of the 2018 IPPY Gold Medal for Best First Book "[A] winning first novel and series launch...Garrett writes with humor and insight about the Hollywood scene."—Publishers Weekly (starred review) "A smart, sassy debut."—Library Journal (starred review) and Debut of the Month "Veteran TV writer Garrett uses her Cold Case experience to inform her debut, which sets up more than one charming character and isn't afraid to go cynical on all things LA."—Kirkus Reviews "Funny, lively characters populate this new Detective by Day series."—RT Book Reviews "Dayna Anderson is a heroine readers will fall in love with."—Kyra Davis, New York Times bestselling author "A non-stop, fun read with humor sharp as a stiletto heel."—Ellen Byron, USA Today bestselling author "Toss in a hit-and-run, a steep reward, and more one-liners than a Marx Brothers marathon and you've got Hollywood Homicide."—Catriona McPherson, Agatha Award-winning author "Has a heart as big as Los Angeles."—Rachel Howzell Hall, author of the LAPD Detective Elouise Norton series "Garrett has written a novel with great voice, characters, hilarious moments, and a lot of Hollywood."—BookRiot




The North Hollywood Detective Club in the Case of the Hollywood Art Heist


Book Description

"You've got to help me," Marisol cried. "My brother is innocent!" With those words, the North Hollywood Detective Club officially begins as teen super-sleuths Jeffrey Jones and Pablo Reyes set out to prove the innocence of Marisol's brother and rescue him from jail. Their search for a stolen painting leads them to a mysterious pawn shop, a glamorous television star, and a 20-year-old unsolved murder! This is the first book in a new teen and middle grade mystery series, starring a pair of 14-year-old boys who start their own detective club. If you're the type who loves origin stories, then this is the book for you. (When I was a kid reading comic books, I always wanted to read the origin stories of all my favorite super heroes!) How are YOUR detective and mystery-solving skills? Check out Amazon's Look Inside feature for this book. When their teacher's apartment is broken into and the police can't solve the crime, Jeffrey Jones and Pablo Reyes take up the challenge! Can you solve the story's first mystery before our young detectives do? REVIEWS: "This is a fantastic read for young adults, teens, or anyone who wants to look back to our teenage years looking for a good mystery to solve." - Amazon Reviewer "This is a fun exciting read!" - Amazon Reviewer A PERSONAL NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: I designed this mystery book series for teens, middle-grade and young adult readers. These are intelligent, well-written mystery and suspense stories, starring a pair of real teen heroes. The clues are laid out as challenges for the reader to solve, and each book is grounded in morality. Originally, I thought they would be good mystery books for boys, but I was pleasantly surprised to discover how much girls also liked them. I hope you enjoy reading these stories as much as I enjoyed writing them. If so, please leave a review, or shoot me an email. I always love hearing from my readers. [email protected] Book Two in this mystery and suspense series for young readers - "The Case of the Dead Man's Treasure" - is now available on Amazon. Middle grade adventure books, middle grade mystery books, teen books, teen fiction, teen mystery books, teen mystery books for boys, ya and young adult mystery books.







Film Noir FAQ


Book Description

(FAQ). Film Noir FAQ celebrates and reappraises some 200 noir thrillers representing 20 years of Hollywood's Golden Age. Noir pulls us close to brutal cops and scheming dames, desperate heist men and hardboiled private eyes, and the unlucky innocent citizens that get in their way. These are exciting movies with tough guys in trench coats and hot tomatoes in form-fitting gowns. The moon is a streetlamp and the narrow streets are prowled by squad cars and long black limousines. Lives are often small but people's plans are big sometimes too big. Robbery, murder, gambling; the gun and the fist; the grift and the con game; the hard kiss and the brutal brush-off. Film Noir FAQ brings lively attention to story, mood, themes, and technical detail, plus behind-the-scenes stories of the production of individual films. Featuring numerous stills and posters many never before published in book form highlighting key moments of great noir movies. Film Noir FAQ serves up insights into many of the most popular and revered names in Hollywood history, including noir's greatest stars, supporting players, directors, writers, and cinematographers. Pour a Scotch, light up a smoke, and lean back with your private guide to film noir.




Murder in Hollywood


Book Description

For more than eighty years, the famous unsolved murder of William Desmond Taylor, the legendary bisexual film director, has generated debate and controversy. Now, best-selling author Charles Higham has solved the crime. Higham uncovers the corruption and intrigue of Los Angeles in the Roaring Twenties—and the film industry moguls’ complete domination of the city’s authorities. When it was discovered that a famous star of the day had probably killed Taylor, a massive cover-up began—from the removal of crucial evidence to the naming of innocent people as killers—which has continued until now to protect the truth. Murder in Hollywood goes beyond the killing to unearth unknown details about the life of Taylor before his arrival in Hollywood, as well as the stories and histories buried by the crooked authorities and criminals involved the case. The author’s exclusive interviews with the culpable star, his unique possession of long-vanished police records, and the support of the present-day Los Angeles county coroner—who examined the evidence as if the murder had taken place now—have ensured a hair-raising thriller. Charles Higham successfully presents the most plausible and convincing solution yet to the mystery. In the process he paints a vivid portrait of Hollywood in the 1920s—from its major stars to its bisexual subculture. The result is a compelling answer to a long-standing mystery and a fascinating study of a place, and an industry that, as today, let people reinvent themselves. Murder in Hollywood is more extraordinary than any crime of fiction and more exciting than any action adventure movie.




Investigation Hollywood


Book Description




Death by Hollywood


Book Description

One evening, spying on his Hollywood Hills neighbours through his $4,000 electronic telescope, Bobby witnesses a beautiful woman making love to a handsome Latin actor called Ramon. As their pillow talk turns ugly, Bobby watches in horror as the woman appears to bludgeon her lover to death with his own acting trophy. Instead of rushing to the cops, Bobby decides to find out more about the events that led up to the crime, and to use the material for his next movie screenplay. However, when he sneaks into the actor's apartment, the discovery he makes changes his life forever. Empowered by his secret knowledge, Bobby is able to seduce the beautiful woman, while forging a unique friendship with Detective Dennis Farentino, the cop in charge of the investigation. Before long Bobby has dragged the detective, his wife, his lover, and his agent into a Hollywood fun-house hall of mirrors, where only the most manipulative player will survive.




Detecting Women


Book Description

Finalist for the 2012 Edgar Award in the Best Critical/Biographical Category presented by the Mystery Writers of America In this extensive and authoritative study of over 300 films, Philippa Gates explores the "woman detective" figure from her pre-cinematic origins in nineteenth century detective fiction through her many incarnations throughout the history of Hollywood cinema. Through the lens of theories of gender, genre, and stardom and engaging with the critical concepts of performativity, masquerade, and feminism, Detecting Women analyzes constructions of the female investigator in the detective genre and focuses on the evolution of her representation from 1929 to today. While a popular assumption is that images of women have become increasingly positive over this period, Gates argues that the most progressive and feminist models of the female detective exist in mainstream film's more peripheral products such as 1930's B-picture and 1970's Blaxploitation films. Offering revisions and new insights into peripheral forms of mainstream film, Gates explores this space that allows a fantasy of resolution of social anxieties about crime and, more interestingly, gender, in the 20th and early 21st centuries. The author's innovative, engaging, and capacious approach to this important figure within feminist film history breaks new ground in the field of gender and film studies.