Rating: 3 1/2 stars

Art Deco Jr. is dead and it's anyone's guess as to who could have murdered him, if indeed it even was murder. It looks like suicide certainly, but Art Deco Jr. has quite a few enemies and none of them have been quiet about their wish to see him dead. Now P.I. Jimmy Netts is on the case, but it's his very first case. He has a gob of work ahead of him, and no idea how to go about it.

At the time of his death, Art Deco Jr. had come around to stability and responsibility after spending his 20's drunk, stoned, and dissolute. He's still in conflict with his family though. They don't approve of his gay lifestyle which puts Art Deco Sr. and one of Junior's sisters squarely in the suspect column. Add to that the longtime lover, Eddie Cotton, who Deco Jr. just tossed out for another man, and it seems that Junior's murder was an eventual and foregone conclusion. It's just a matter of who and why and this is what Jimmy Netts must figure out.

The story is a very black comedy with characters who are so stereotypical as to be almost mocking. It's easy to see that this is a spoof of the old noir detective novels and in that light, it's quite funny. The writing itself is somewhat simplistic and switches abruptly from 3rd person to 1st person, depending on the character. It can be a bit jarring but you stop noticing it after awhile. This most definitely isn't a deep or terribly involved story but it is entertaining, and it will have you laughing until the end.
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Paperback: 256 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster (June 2, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1416575596
ISBN-13: 978-1416575597