Chasing the Devil's Tail
A
Valentin St. Cyr Mystery
David
Fulmer
Poisoned Pen Press (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 1-890208-84-1 (1890208841)
ISBN-13: 978-1-890208-84-4 (9781890208844)
Publication Date: November 2001
List Price: $24.95
Synopsis (from
the publisher): Storyville, New Orleans, 1907. In this raucous,
rowdy, bloody red-light district, where 2000 scarlet women ply their
trade in grand mansions and filthy dime-a-trick cribs, cocaine and
opium are sold over the counter, and rye whiskey flows like an amber
river, there's a killer loose.
Someone is murdering Storyville prostitutes and marking each killing
with a black rose. There's a new music called "jass" in the air. And
madness is shattering the mind of "King" Buddy Bolden, even as he
showers the New Orleans nights with his loud brass.
When Creole detective Valentin St. Cyr is sent to bring down the
murderer, he encounters an extraordinary cast of characters, many of
them drawn from history: Tom Anderson, the political boss who runs
Storyville like a private kingdom; Lulu White, the District's most
notorious madam, later an inspiration for Mae West; E. J. Bellocq, the
crippled dwarf and photographer of Storyville whores; Ferdinand
LeMenthe, the young piano player who would come to be known as Jelly
Roll Morton; and finally, Buddy Bolden, the man who all but invented
jazz and is now losing his mind.
Review:
David Fulmer introduces Valentin St. Cyr in his first mystery, Chasing the Devil's Tail.
This atmospheric mystery has all the elements of a great book:
memorable characters, a terrific plot, conflict and resolution, and a
unique time and locale for detective fiction, New Orleans early in the
20th century. Fulmer also gives an authentic feel to his story by
incorporating historical people and events.
Valentin St. Cyr is a complex character. Though he works for, and in
some ways is indebted to, the unofficial mayor of Storyville, Tom
Anderson (a real-life person who owned the largest saloon and had a
stake in many others), Valentin has an independent streak and follows
his own moral compass in dealing with friends and associates, putting
at risk his relationship with the powerful Anderson. He suspects
Anderson knows more than he's letting on, but is wise enough not to
push too hard to get the information.
Though Fulmer leads the reader to the obvious conclusion as to who is
the perpetrator of the crimes, the why, and in particular, the how,
remain a mystery to the very end.
Chasing the
Devil's Tail is unquestionably the year's best mystery.
Special thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for providing an ARC of Chasing the Devil's Tail for this review.
Review Copyright © 2001 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.
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Mysteries in this series ...
Chasing the Devil's Tail
Poisoned Pen Press (Hardcover), November 2001
ISBN-10: 1-890208-84-1 (1890208841)
ISBN-13: 978-1-890208-84-4 (9781890208844)
Jass
Harcourt (Hardcover), January 2005
ISBN-10: 0-15-101025-0 (0151010250)
ISBN-13: 978-0-15-101025-7 (9780151010257)
Rampart Street
Harcourt (Hardcover), January 2006
ISBN-10: 0-15-101024-2 (0151010242)
ISBN-13: 978-0-15-101024-0 (9780151010240)
Lost River
Harcourt (Hardcover), January 2009
ISBN-10: 0-15-101187-7 (0151011877)
ISBN-13: 978-0-15-101187-2 (9780151011872)
Omnimystery keywords for Chasing the Devil's Tail
...
Location(s) referenced: New Orleans, Louisiana.
