CHARLES LEE JACKSON II INTERVIEWED - CLICK THE PLAYER ON THE RIGHT

Learn about the events that led to CLJII's fascination with comic book, move serial and pulp magazine storytelling in PART I of a revealing interview conducted by Bill Mills. Then buy The Emperor books at Amazon, B&N, iTunes and other ebook sellers. Only $3.99.

CLIFFORD JOHNSON - THE MAN WHO MODELED NERO WOLFE FOR MAGAZINE ILLUSTRATORS

"When Thornton Utz . set about illustrating Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe mystery ("Omit Flowers') he needed a very big man to pose as Stout's beer-drinking, orchid-loving detective hero. Friends told him about Clifford L. "Tiny" Johnson, who is known in Utz's part of Connecticut as "the Mayor." Johnson is a 6-foot-4-inch 'mountain of a man who weighs 310 pounds and is "the mayor"i.e., First Selectman—of Fairfield Township, Conn. "Tiny" operates his own insurance agency in Fairfield, says his mayoral duties are not so arduous they would prevent him from posing for an artist, so he was delighted to stand in for Nero Wolfe. Unlike Wolfe, "Tiny" wouldn't cross the street for the rarest orchid in captivity, and, as far as he is concerned, his friends can "omit beer," too."

 --From the American Magazine Nov. 1948.

Have you met the female Nero Wolfe in the newly reprinted of the famous 1940s sleuth, Amy Brewster? If you love Wolfe, you will love Amy Brewster. Read Meet Amy Brewster only 99cents

"Amy Brewster is a cigar-smoking, 300-pound lawyer-financier introduced by Sam Merwin Jr. in 1945. Upper-class but unfeminine, she is enlisted by friends to solve crimes. She appears in Knife in My Back (1945), Message from a Corpse (1945) and A Matter of Policy (1946). Amy Brewster is defined against the genre's stereotypes, particularly the femme fatale: she is not attractive, not home-bound, and not submissive, either conversationally or professionally." -Frances A. DellaCava and Madeline H. Engel, Female Detective in American Novels, A Bibliography and Analysis of Serialized Female Sleuths (1993).

PORTRAITS OF NERO WOLFE AND DAUGHTER FROM ORIGINAL MAGAZINE PRINTING OF "OVER MY DEAD BODY"

No one was more surprised than Archie Goodwin when he learned Nero Wolfe had a long-lost daughter in the classic "Over My Dead Body." The fact that Wolfe's daughter, to get him to help her friend, told him the friend was his daughter, added to the mystery. Below is artist Carl Mueller's conception of the Wolfe and daughter.

 

Ssee all eight full sized illustrations from this story at our Facebook Album.

If You Love Wolfe, You May Want to Read...

Amy  Brewster, the Female Nero Wolfe!

"Amy Brewster is a cigar-smoking, 300-pound lawyer-financier introduced by Sam Merwin Jr. in 1945. Upper-class but unfeminine, she is enlisted by friends to solve crimes. She appears in Knife in My Back (1945), Message from a Corpse (1945) and A Matter of Policy (1946). Both Bertha Cool and Amy Brewster are defined against the genre's stereotypes, particularly the femme fatale: they are not attractive, not home-bound, and not submissive, either conversationally or professionally."

-Frances A. DellaCava and Madeline H. Engel, Female Detective in American Novels, A Bibliography and Analysis of Serialized Female Sleuths (1993).  

3 PORTRAITS OF NERO WOLFE BY THORNTON UTZ, THE SUPREME NERO WOLFE ARTIST

Thornton Utz produced covers for The American Magazine, Colliers, and the legendary Saturday Evening Post, until the rise of television after World War II killed the magazine industry and the publications that had been his financial mainstay.

Utz is best known, however, as the artist most associated with Nero Wolfe and was said by The American Magazine to have illustrated more Nero Wolfe stories than any other artist.

Visitors can see full-sized versions of these and other portraits of the rotund master detective in the Thornton Utz Album at our Deerstalker Facebook page.

 

Look for more Utz portraits of Nero Wolfe and portraits by other famous illustrators soon.

Plus illustrations of the inimitable Archie Goodwin soon.



If you love Nero Wolfe, and what right-thinking person doesn't?, you will want to read the adventures of Sam Merwin's rotund, cigar smoking gourmand detective, Amy Brewster, the female Nero Wolfe, reprinted for the first time since the 1940s. Start with A Knife in My Back. Only $3.99 in Kindle at Amazon.

OUT NOW: Irv Eachus' The Men from the Grassy Knoll: A Political Thriller

Deerstalker Editions is proud to announce its newest release, The Men from the Grassy Knoll, by the distinguished thriller writer, Irving Eachus.

The Men from the Grassy Knoll is a suspenseful, thoughtful and at times heartbreaking novel about the Kennedy Assassination.

Eachus' work "Keeps the reader asking the ultimate question, 'Then what happened?'" -Booklist.

According to many witnesses, not one man - but two - were seen on the grassy knoll that fateful day in November.

This is the story of  Charlie Cross, the second man. Cross, a hippie journalist, was swept up by forces he did not understand and could not escape and manipulated into being at the scene as Oswald fired the fateful shot. But who placed him there? And why? Cross is determined to find the answers.

His quest will lead him to the highest halls of power, to encounters with the nation's most powerful figures including John and Robert Kennedy, Chief Justice Earl Warren, and sly, dangerous J. Edgar Hoover, and others. It will also lead him into the arms of  Laura Mills, a journalist who becomes supporter, rival and lover,

But when Charlie uncovers the identity of the man pulling the strings, it is the one person no one would have ever guessed.


 Suspense novelist Irving Eachus, author of The Raid and Sunstroke, served as an Instructor at the Navy's Nuclear Power Training Unit outside of Idaho Falls, Idaho (a principal locale in The Men from the Grassy Knoll). For twenty years he was on the staff of University of California. He has devoted much of his life to studying and evaluating the assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy and the enormous, labyrinthine body of work that has grown up around it.

Here is what the critics say about Irving Eachus' novels:
"...plausible ... full of authentic technical detail, solid characterization - top drawer in this genre," Kirkus Review.
"...should keep readers turning pages well past bedtime," Orlando Sentinel Star.

Meet The Men from the Grassy Knoll at Amazon

available in paperback and Kindle format

Find Deerstalker Editions On Tumblr!

For all you folks who like to cruise the very cool images - and other fun things - on Tumblr here's some great news: Deerstalker Editions has a brand new face there!

Keep an eye on it for special news, treats, and all kinds of Deerstalker-related stuff!

Rivals of Sherlock Holmes: How The Thinking Machine Got His Name

It was absolutely impossible. Twenty-five chess masters from the world at large, foregathered in Boston for the annual championships, unanimously declared it impossible, and unanimity on any given point is an unusual mental condition for chess masters. Not one would concede for an instant that it was within the range of human achievement. Some grew red in the face as they argued it, others smiled loftily and were silent; still others dismissed the matter in a word as wholly absurd.

A casual remark by the distinguished scientist and logician, Professor Augustus S. F. X. Van Dusen, provoked the discussion. He had, in the past, aroused bitter disputes by some chance remark; in fact had been once a sort of controversial centre of the sciences. It had been due to his modest announcement of a startling and unorthodox hypothesis that he had been invited to vacate the chair of Philosophy in a great university. Later that university had felt honoured when he accepted its degree of LL. D.

For a score of years, educational and scientific institutions of the world had amused themselves by crowding degrees upon him. He had initials that stood for things he couldn't pronounce; degrees from France, England, Russia, Germany, Italy, Sweden and Spain. These were expressed recognition of the fact that his was the foremost brain in the sciences. The imprint of his crabbed personality lay heavily on half a dozen of its branches. Finally there came a time when argument was respectfully silent in the face of one of his conclusions.

The remark which had arrayed the chess masters of the world into so formidable and unanimous a dissent was made by Professor Van Dusen in the presence of three other gentlemen of note. One of these, Dr. Charles Elbert, happened to be a chess enthusiast.

"Chess is a shameless perversion of the functions of the brain," was Professor Van Dusen's declaration in his perpetually irritated voice. "It is a sheer waste of effort, greater because it is possibly the most difficult of all fixed abstract problems. Of course logic will solve it. Logic will solve any problem–not most of them but any problem. A thorough understanding of its rules would enable anyone to defeat your greatest chess players. It would be inevitable, just as inevitable as that two and two make four, not some times but all the time. I don't know chess because I never do useless things, but I could take a few hours of competent instruction and defeat a man who has devoted his life to it. His mind is cramped; bound down to the logic of chess. Mine is not; mine employs logic in its widest scope."

Dr. Elbert shook his head vigorously. "It is impossible," he asserted.

"Nothing is impossible," snapped the scientist. "The human mind can do anything. It is all we have to lift us above the brute creation. For Heaven's sake leave us that."

The aggressive tone, the uncompromising egotism brought a flush to Dr. Elbert's face. Professor Van Dusen affected many persons that way, particularly those fellow savants who, themselves men of distinction, had ideas of their own.

"Do you know the purposes of chess? Its countless combinations?" asked Dr. Elbert.

"No," was the crabbed reply. "I know nothing whatever of the game beyond the general purpose which, I understand to be, to move certain pieces in certain directions to stop an opponent from moving his King. Is that correct?"

"Yes," said Dr. Elbert slowly, "but I never heard it stated just that way before."

"Then, if that is correct, I maintain that the true logician can defeat the chess expert by the pure mechanical rules of logic. I'll take a few hours some time, acquaint myself with the moves of the pieces, and defeat you to convince you."

Professor Van Dusen glared savagely into the eyes of Dr. Elbert.

"Not me," said Dr. Elbert. "You say anyone–you for instance, might defeat the greatest chess player. Would you be willing to meet the greatest chess player after you 'acquaint' yourself with the game?"

"Certainly," said the scientist. "I have frequently found it necessary to make a fool of myself to convince people. I'll do it again."

This, then, was the acrimonious beginning of the discussion which aroused chess masters and brought open dissent from eminent men who had not dared for years to dispute any assertion by the distinguished Professor Van Dusen. It was arranged that at the conclusion of the championships Professor Van Dusen should meet the winner. This happened to be Tschaikowsky, the Russian, who had been champion for half a dozen years.

After this expected result of the tournament Hillsbury, a noted American master, spent a morning with Professor Van Dusen in the latter's modest apartments on Beacon Hill. He left there with a sadly puzzled face; that afternoon Professor Van Dusen met the Russian champion. The newspapers had said a great deal about the affair and hundreds were present to witness the game.

There was a little murmur of astonishment when Professor Van Dusen appeared. He was slight, almost child-like in body, and his thin shoulders seemed to droop beneath the weight of his enormous head. He wore a number eight hat. His brow rose straight and dome-like and a heavy shock of long, yellow hair gave him almost a grotesque appearance. The eyes were narrow slits of blue squinting eternally through thick spectacles; the face was small, clean shaven, drawn and white with the pallor of the student. His lips made a perfectly straight line. His hands were remarkable for their whiteness, their flexibility, and for the length of the slender fingers. One glance showed that physical development had never entered into the schedule of the scientist's fifty years of life.

The Russian smiled as he sat down at the chess table. He felt that he was humouring a crank. The other masters were grouped near by, curiously expectant. Professor Van Dusen began the game, opening with a Queen's gambit. At his fifth move, made without the slightest hesitation, the smile left the Russian's face. At the tenth, the masters grew intensely eager. The Russian champion was playing for honour now. Professor Van Dusen's fourteenth move was King's castle to Queen's four.

"Check," he announced.

After a long study of the board the Russian protected his King with a Knight. Professor Van Dusen noted the play then leaned back in his chair with finger tips pressed together. His eyes left the board and dreamily studied the ceiling. For at least ten minutes there was no sound, no movement, then:

"Mate in fifteen moves," he said quietly.

There was a quick gasp of astonishment. It took the practised eyes of the masters several minutes to verify the announcement. But the Russian champion saw and leaned back in his chair a little white and dazed. He was not astonished; he was helplessly floundering in a maze of incomprehensible things. Suddenly he arose and grasped the slender hand of his conqueror.

"You have never played chess before?" he asked.

"Never."

"Mon Dieu! You are not a man; you are a brain–a machine–a thinking machine."

"It's a child's game," said the scientist abruptly. There was no note of exultation in his voice; it was still the irritable, impersonal tone which was habitual.

This, then, was Professor Augustus S. F. X. Van Dusen, Ph. D., LL. D., F. R. S., M. D., etc., etc., etc. This is how he came to be known to the world at large as The Thinking Machine. The Russian's phrase had been applied to the scientist as a title by a newspaper reporter, Hutchinson Hatch. It had stuck.

Welcome to The Emperorverse! Heroes, Superheroes, Superheroines & Spies - With Style!

Who is the Emperor?  What is The Emperor?

It's the question on everyone's lips. Or at least the evil masterminds of crime known as Continent-Eight.

The Emperor is the central figure in a series of underground pulp magazine novels Deerstalker Editions is reprinting written by Charles Lee Jackson II and featuring the exploits of The Emperor, a debonair 1960s adventurer with a team of agents who help him out on his case.

A bit of Doc Savage, a bit of James Bond and a dash of The Saint,  The Emperor will face many perils and the world's deadliest villains during his career, but none as dangerous as those of Continent-Eight, the dread Executive of Crime.

Who is Continent-Eight? Next you will be asking, Who is Varan Haruchi, or the Gila,  or Victoria Poten, or Warhead, or Madame von Teufel. 

Maybe you should read what follows. The first draft of our Pocket Guide to Charles Lee Jackson's II's Emerorverse - and then read for yourself the underground pulp action sensation – first time ever in book form!

Are you a fan of Jason Bourne and Cotton Malone? Of “Maverick” and “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.”? Of Modesty Blaise and Catwoman? Of Spiderman and Green Lantern? Of Doc Savage or the Spider?

Then prepare to enter a world of adventure and danger, of a hero unequaled since the days of the movie serial, of the comic book, and of the pulp magazine - a world of memorable characters, good and evil. Welcome to the Emperorverse! 

For over four decades, in dozens of privately published comic books and pulp magazines, Charles Lee Jackson II has produced a unique body of work set in what his fans hail as the "Emperorverse". Its central figure is The Emperor, a 1960s adventurer and crusader for good whose secret identity is the harassed head of a minor Hollywood movie studio. The Emperor is smart, swift, capable of amazing feats, all but indestructible, well-dressed, able to charm beautiful women with a single smile. He leads the fight for law and justice against all odds.

In his war against evil, The Emperor is aided by as memorable a group of allies in crime-busting as Doc Savage's fabled companions. His supporting cast includes Bill Mills, musician, stuntman, and adventurer who joined The Emperor to make motion pictures and stayed to fight crime; Max Decker, Federal Intelligence agent who met The Emperor in the field and worked for many years as a crime-fighter while masquerading as a criminal gang-leader, the Gila; the amazing Shanghai Lil, red-headed woman as skilled with a blade as her wits. Plus a host of costumed heroines and heroes, super and otherwise, among them Shooting Star, Solara, Nemesis, Cat's-Eye, Fireball, and the robot Titan.

 

Opposing him is Continent-Eight, the international Executive of Crime and its creator, Varan Haruchi, AKA The Black Dragon, whose exposure to arcane experimental chemicals has resulted in his long-lived youthful appearance. The Emperor also encounters a host of other evil-doers in his war against crime and destruction: Dr. Yalta, doctor and dentist once recruited by US intelligence for his resemblance to warlord Adolf Hitler, kept young by the same accident, who now supervises medical and scientific crimes for Continent-Eight. Maskman, a mysterious helmeted figure, whose true identity is unknown even to his partners in crime. Victoria Poten, The Jade Dragon, third generation Eurasian crime boss whose personal goals of crime often place her at odds with her partners. Horst Sterling Rosefeld, the mysterious and powerful leader of the Church of Nihilism, dedicated to the destruction of the human race, and ruthless enough to accomplish it. And a rogue's gallery of sinister figures, notable among them Johnny Rainbow, the Steel Skull, Xavier Xavier AKA Dr. Double X, the Eye, Alain Sarnov, the Dragon, Warhead, and Madame von Teufel.

They are all part of the Emperorverse, an incredible assembly of international spies, space aliens, mad scientists, colorful villains, costumed heroes, secret agents, spacemen, and even the cowboys of yesteryear, all engaged in the wildest and wooliest adventures you’ve ever read.




It's an amazing and unequaled creative tapestry, woven into a complex, interrelated web that snares the imagination. Brought to you by its creator, Charles Lee Jackson II, and Deerstalker Editions.

If you are a fan of David Leadbetter, James Rollins, Lester Dent, Leslie Charteris and/or Maxwell Grant, you won't want to miss The Emperor books.

Click HERE to Buy book one, The Emperor's Gambit, on Kindle at Amazon, and begin the adventure now!

A Wonderful New Promo Spot For The Emperor's Gambit by Charles Lee Jackson

Out Now: The Last Sell Out By Jack Bludis

There is simply no one better at writing hard-core detective stories than our Shamus Award Nominee Jack Bludis, and he proves that with his brand new book: The Last Sell Out.

In this compelling mystery, a young studio secretary is missing along with a number of valuable scripts that might be adapted for television. Their author is murdered, and within a few days, he is nominated for an Oscar. At the same time, a New York TV genius is playing studio against studio for production space and artistic control. Hired to investigate the writer's murder, a cynical private eye finds himself involved with a violent motorcycle gang, low-lifes, and studio bigwigs. Then an apparent innocent is murdered, another remains missing, and the detective becomes an avenging angel. His actions endanger not only his own life, but the life of  the woman he loves. It's the early 1950s, and former movie audiences were staying home to watch I Love Lucy on TV. Television's big success meant declining attendance and revenues at the movies. Studio executives were taking every means to compete, including subterfuge, double-dealing, theft, and the sin-of-sins, merging with New York, TV production companies. This mystery as Roman à clef features invented lead characters intermingled with real studios, executives, and actors. Long-time movie fans will recognize the real-life counterparts behind their fictional disguises. From the Edgar and Shamus finalist mystery writer, Jack Bludis.

Patrick Whitehurst reads from Monterey Noir

Here's a very fun treat: Patrick Whitehurst - the author of the excellent (and recently released) Monterey Noir reads from his work!

“The elusive Barker is a deserving member of an exclusive society; that of the great detective. He uses his intellect in a way that most people fail to do and cuts through to the heart of the mystery with precision.” -Billierosie

Not every hero lives in a mansion or works from a smoky, hard-boiled office. Enter Barker, a mysterious man with no memory of his past. Ferociously handsome and acutely observant, Barker makes his home under the soggy planks of Old Fisherman's Wharf along California's foggy Central Coast. His closest friends are an assortment of stray dogs, ranging from a large Rottweiler to a tiny Shih-Tzu, who live with him. Adventure and intrigue have an uncanny knack for crossing Barker's path.

In the first entry of the series; Nickel, Barker’s sole human friend, bestows his makeshift home upon the man and his dogs just before dropping dead. It’s up to Barker to honor Nickel’s last wish, to atone for his sins, which doesn’t prove an easy task. Meanwhile, forces are at work in other parts of the fog-swept city, which will lead the homeless detective and his dogs to a deadly confrontation in the heart of Monterey Bay itself.

Patrick Whitehurst, born on the Monterey Peninsula, currently lives in Sedona, Ariz. As a journalist, he's written hundreds of stories for newspapers across the Grand Canyon State, as well as two regional non-fiction books. Whitehurst can be found online at www.patrickwhitehurst.blogspot.com.

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A Q&A With Patrick Whitehurst, Author of Monterey Noir

Here's a wonderful Q&A with Patrick Whitehurst, the kick-ass author of the Barker series of mysteries ... the first of which, Monterey Noir, was just released by Deerstalker!

“The elusive Barker is a deserving member of an exclusive society; that of the great detective. He uses his intellect in a way that most people fail to do and cuts through to the heart of the mystery with precision.” -Billierosie

Not every hero lives in a mansion or works from a smoky, hard-boiled office. Enter Barker, a mysterious man with no memory of his past. Ferociously handsome and acutely observant, Barker makes his home under the soggy planks of Old Fisherman's Wharf along California's foggy Central Coast. His closest friends are an assortment of stray dogs, ranging from a large Rottweiler to a tiny Shih-Tzu, who live with him. Adventure and intrigue have an uncanny knack for crossing Barker's path.

In the first entry of the series; Nickel, Barker’s sole human friend, bestows his makeshift home upon the man and his dogs just before dropping dead. It’s up to Barker to honor Nickel’s last wish, to atone for his sins, which doesn’t prove an easy task. Meanwhile, forces are at work in other parts of the fog-swept city, which will lead the homeless detective and his dogs to a deadly confrontation in the heart of Monterey Bay itself.

Patrick Whitehurst, born on the Monterey Peninsula, currently lives in Sedona, Ariz. As a journalist, he's written hundreds of stories for newspapers across the Grand Canyon State, as well as two regional non-fiction books. Whitehurst can be found online at www.patrickwhitehurst.blogspot.com.

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Q: Tell us about THE BARKER MYSTERIES - what can readers expect from your fun, new series?

MN is a rousing tale of mystery and action, with a little taste of pulpy nostalgia, as I designed Monterey Noir's main character Barker as a kind of mystery man - with no memory of his past or how he came to be homeless with a pack of dogs. I think of him as a mix between Sherlock Holmes and Tarzan in a way, with his canine friends as sidekicks and assistants. He couldn't do what he does without them! Besides a sense of adventure, and besides the various mysteries Barker and his dogs get wrapped up in, I also wanted to illustrate a man who cares very little about the world of 9 to 5 employment, and create a noble homeless hero - as most don't think of the transient community that way of course.

Q: What was some of your inspirations for Barker?

When I was younger I once saw a man in a heavy coat running across the bike trail between Old Fisherman's Wharf and Cannery Row in the Monterey Peninsula. It was about 5 a.m. and I was riding my bicycle along the trail to get to work - a breakfast restaurant that I usually opened. The man shouted into a walkie-talkie as he ran. It struck me as very odd, as he looked homeless: disheveled, full beard, and pretty damn skanky in all. Could he be an undercover cop? Someone wrapped up in a mystery that had no choice but to cooperate? I never did find out, but Barker was born in my mind that day. Only years later did I get around to writing it out.

Q: We know that you and Monterey have a special connection - can you share some of your experiences and the magic of that place that led to your series?

Having grown up in the aftermath of the Monterey Pop Festival, I'd say I saw the leftover music fans of that bygone era take on jobs and begin new lives when they realized they couldn't return home. As a child I saw life from the view of "hippies" - heroine addicts, loud music and little clothing. And I saw the majesty of the Monterey Bay, the surf along Del Monte beach, seagulls gliding over my school as I sat in the classroom, and realized how lucky I was to be born there. Later I learned of Cannery Row's history, of John Steinbeck, and saw money come into the peninsula, forcing the low income residents inland, and how the ocean never seemed to care. 

Q: Many noir writers like to play with the genre -- and your series is certainly playful -- what did you like adding or changing with Barker that separates it from other mysteries?

I wanted to play with idea of short mysteries, stand alone short stories, that tie into a bigger picture. For me, Barker's escapades in Monterey Noir build a larger story, but can also be read in standalone segments, and still offer the creative take on the anti-hero. Also, noir tends to hint at, to play with, the idea of a sex scene. I took it to the next level and made those sex scenes a little more full-bodied - a little raunchier!

Q: We know that the second volume of Barker will be coming out soon as well, care to tease your readers with some of your plans for the future?

'Monterey Pulp: The Barker Mysteries' picks up where 'Noir' left off, with Barker trying to avoid the media spotlight that falls upon him after his rescue of the Mayor of Carmel By the Sea in the book's last chapter. He takes to the Carmel Highlands to hide in the first chapter, and returns there again, in the final chapter titled 'Deadrent Kingdom.' In that chapter he comes upon a whole community of homeless people who live in the woods, but not peacefully!

Currently I'm fleshing out the third volume, 'Monterey Confidential,' which reveals a little more about Barker's past. It also takes him to the red rocks of Sedona, Arizona, for an encounter with a thug for hire. I'm having a lot of fun with the third entry, as I enjoy the "fish out of water" story. That and I'm introducing Barker to an army of ferocious chihuhuas!

Out Now: No Accounting For Danger By Laird Long

Here's a real special treat for fans of hardcore noir mysteries - with a humorous twist: No Accounting For Danger By Laird Long

When this CPA crunched the numbers, they added up to crime. After graduating from university, gun Clint Magnum, accountant-in-training, is hired by Twinkle & Winkle Chartered Accountants of Winnipeg, Manitoba. He quickly discovers many of the firms he is assigned to audit are less that squeaky clean, and that many have balance sheets that hide criminality - or worse. These include: Roadhog Trucking - a company whose corporate vision is a load of something other than clarity; a senior citizen-run crafts emporium where the blue-haired merchants are importing more than just knickknacks; the clandestine tax reclassification of the oxymoronic Democracy Foundation. Along the way, Clint and his buddies, Spud Morgan and Vanya Holden, are forced to attend a training session in the secluded hinterland of Eastern Manitoba, under the unbalanced guidance of a host of crackpot consultants and technical shamans. And as the months crawl by like wounded snails, Clint realizes the more he knows the greater a threat he becomes to his bosses and clients. When a man knows too much, he needs to be very careful. But as Clint finds out, even that may not be not be enough, because as careful as you are - there is no accounting for danger. Then comes a climax filled with emotional sparks and electrical blackout.

Out Now: Monterey Noir By Patrick Whitehurst

PageTurner/Deerstalker Editions is extremely pleased and proud to announce the publication of the first of a brand-new series by the incredible Patrick Whitehurst.  Monterey Noir (the first of the Barker Mysteries) is thrilling, charming, unique and an absolutely fantastic read!

“The elusive Barker is a deserving member of an exclusive society; that of the great detective. He uses his intellect in a way that most people fail to do and cuts through to the heart of the mystery with precision.” -Billierosie

Not every hero lives in a mansion or works from a smoky, hard-boiled office. Enter Barker, a mysterious man with no memory of his past. Ferociously handsome and acutely observant, Barker makes his home under the soggy planks of Old Fisherman's Wharf along California's foggy Central Coast. His closest friends are an assortment of stray dogs, ranging from a large Rottweiler to a tiny Shih-Tzu, who live with him. Adventure and intrigue have an uncanny knack for crossing Barker's path.

In the first entry of the series; Nickel, Barker’s sole human friend, bestows his makeshift home upon the man and his dogs just before dropping dead. It’s up to Barker to honor Nickel’s last wish, to atone for his sins, which doesn’t prove an easy task. Meanwhile, forces are at work in other parts of the fog-swept city, which will lead the homeless detective and his dogs to a deadly confrontation in the heart of Monterey Bay itself.

Patrick Whitehurst, born on the Monterey Peninsula, currently lives in Sedona, Ariz. As a journalist, he's written hundreds of stories for newspapers across the Grand Canyon State, as well as two regional non-fiction books. Whitehurst can be found online at www.patrickwhitehurst.blogspot.com.