Benny Cooperman's favourite lunch counter and diner have closed down and the fittings have been sold to Americans. The nation mourns the accidental death of its greatest artist, cellist Dermot Keogh. It's April and there's already a heat wave. Things are just not the way they used to be.
Alas, not just the plots and settings have changed in Howard Engel's 10th Benny Cooperman mystery. While Canada's favourite fictional detective is still his smart-alecky but unsophisticated self ("Dim Sum may be unknown in Grantham, Mr. Cooperman, but we in Toronto have had it for nearly forty years"), his talents seem washed out, if not washed up. It's a nasty little mystery set in the high-tech, high-pressure world of a Toronto TV station far up the road from his native Grantham.
Robyn Gillam of York University adds, "All the stock figures are here - the former high school love goddess who calls at the detective's office wondering if she's in the path of a killer, the small-town lawyer, the slobbish cops, and the heavies in dark glasses. What's missing are the gritty small-town ambience and naked class antagonisms that drive best hard-boiled detective fiction, including Engel's early novels. Burdened with the bland homogeneity of the contemporary city and with convoluted literary references, the tale becomes progressively less gripping. In fact Cooperman hasn't been himself since 1990's 'Dead and Buried,' when his creator first fell for the suits and the happy ending. The warning of his first sentence--"I should have seen the writing on the wall"--should have been a message to readers as well."
Librarian's note #1: characters, pub dates, settings, and pagination have been entered and the description checked - but corrections welcome!
Librarian's note #2: the series consists of 12 novels and 2 novellas: #1. The Suicide Murders (1980), #2. The Ransom Game (1981), #3. Murder On Location (1982), #4. Murder Sees The Light (1984), #5. A City Called July (1986), #6. A Victim Must Be Found (1988), #7. Dead And Buried (1990), #7A. The Whole Megillah (1991) (a novella), #8. There Was An Old Woman (1993), #9. Getting Away With Murder (1995), #10. The Cooperman Variations (2001), #10A. My Brother's Keeper (2001) with Eric Wright (a novella), #11. Memory Book (2005), #12, and East Of Suez (2008). A thirteenth, Over the River, was scheduled for 2018 but never came out.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
HOWARD ENGEL is the creator of the enduring and beloved detective Benny Cooperman, who, through his appearance in 12 bestselling novels, has become an internationally recognized fictional sleuth. Two of Engel s novels have been adapted for TV movies, and his books have been translated into several languages. He is the winner of numerous awards, including the 2005 Writers Trust of Canada Matt Cohen Award, the 1990 Harbourfront Festival Prize for Canadian Literature and an Arthur Ellis Award for crime fiction. Howard Engel lives in Toronto.
The new installment of the Canadian novelist's popular private-eye series finds perpetually struggling investigator Benny Cooperman leaving his usual setting--the fictional Ontario city of Grantham--and taking up temporary residence in the bustling metropolis of Toronto, where he's signed on as bodyguard to an old high-school acquaintance. Television exec Vanessa Moss was the object of Benny's adolescent affections, although she never knew it. Now he must protect her from some unnamed killers, despite her insistence on putting herself at risk at every possible opportunity. As usual, Benny fumbles his way through the case but eventually sorts out lies from truth and bad guys from good guys. This is a charming series (imagine Sam Spade as played by Woody Allen, or perhaps Jon Lovitz); readers new to Benny's world may find themselves a little confused from time to time, but this is only a minor inconvenience. Benny is a wonderful narrator, and once readers have spent a few minutes with him, they will feel like they've known him all their lives. Great fun. David Pitt
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Soft cover. Condition: Near Fine. No Jacket. 1st Edition. First edition first printing of a near fine softcover, pages toning, with French Flaps and no jacket as issued. The 10th novel in the Benny Cooperman mystery series, a P.I. operating in the fictional city of Grantham ON Canada. Seller Inventory # 666
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Seller: Scene of the Crime, ABAC, IOBA, St. Catharines, ON, Canada
Soft cover. Condition: Near Fine. 1st Edition. First edition, first printing of the tenth mystery in the "Benny Cooperman" series. Earlier owner's name on the first free-end page. In near fine condition. Seller Inventory # 7390
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Soft cover. Condition: Near Fine. 1st Edition. First edition, first printing of the tenth novel in the "Benny Cooperman" series. SIGNED by Engel on the title page. Light toning to the pages. In near fine condition. Signed by Author(s). Seller Inventory # 38197
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Soft cover. Condition: Fine. 1st Edition. Penguin Books Canada, Toronto, 2001, Trade Paperback in french flaps, First Edition, SIGNED BY AUTHOR, with no other inscription. Slight age tanning to the pages, otherwise a new and unread copy. Signed by Author(s). Seller Inventory # 001168
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