Customer Reviews

Babylon Nights (David Spandau Novels)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Anna Mayhew, an almost "has been" in Hollywood, is planning her suicide. Vincent Perec, a razor wielding fan, is planning her murder. Then along comes private investigator David Spandau to put a hitch in both their plans.

Babylon Nights is Daniel Depp's follow up to 2009's Loser's Town, which introduced readers to the cut-throat, seedy underbelly of the film industry through the eyes of former rodeo rider turned movie stuntman turned private investigator, David Spandau. With Babylon Nights, Depp has written a tight and well told story using his background in the film industry to craft a true noir crime novel.

The story opens with a twisted Perec standing over nude photos of the former Hollywood hottie, Anna Mayhew. After spending months on the internet tracking down the rare old photos, he traded two thousand dollars to a guy in San Diego to get them. Now the photos are his, and he's slashing himself with his father's razor, sending blood droplets onto Anna's photographs. All the time, he knows his controlling Maman would take them from him if she knew they existed.

The action then cuts to the top parking tier of the trendy Beverly Center as Mayhew, trades seven thousand dollars to student and neurotoxin peddler Kenny Kingston for enough poison to end her sagging career and her life. But while leaving a charity luncheon, someone gets too close to Mayhew and she realizes that her scarf has been slashed. Add in a stack of over-the-top, obsessed fan letters and it's no surprise that Spandau gets called in to meet with her.

We are quickly immersed in Mayhew's world as she heads off to the glittering Cannes Film Festival to serve as a panel judge, with Spandau along for ride. As the story unfolds, loose ends involving a few of Spandau's former associates and clients are neatly tied up. In a quirky but ingenious "wrong place at the wrong time" situation, Perec encounters a hooker named Chantarelle, a pimp named Special, and a bag full of the mob's loot. Of course, in the end, all roads lead to Cannes, with Anna being the hunter's prey.

Depp's stand-out talent is his ever-so-snappy dialogue. This is the stuff that makes old detective stories so darn much fun, and clearly Depp knows it and runs with it. With Babylon Nights, the story flows easily with well defined characters and more than enough intrigue to make you turn the page, or hit the "next page" bar on your e-reader. This time, Depp has done away with the non-essentials and sticks to a solid storyline while still including an interesting and somewhat satirical secondary plot with intriguing characters. Depp has wisely used his insider knowledge to enhance the story and has kept his tongue firmly planted in his cheek as the threads weave together for an I- never-saw-it coming ending.

This is a David Spandau book I'd buy and I would happily line up to see a movie version. I hope there's a next installment so we can find out what happens after "the end."

After a stellar debut in "Loser's Town", Daniel Depp's Hollywood gumshoe David Spandau returns in yet another look at the seamy underbelly of Tinseltown.

This time he's trying to protect a former Hollywood glam-star from the possibly fatal attentions of a psycho intent on realizing his perverted fantasies which center upon her.

From the Hollywood Hills to the Cannes Film Festival, Depp again takes us on a roller-coaster ride seen through the eyes of a true insider as filtered through the humorously cynical lens of personal experience.

Throw in an opera-loving pimp and a French ex-cop-turned-security-expert, and you have a cast of quirky characters guaranteed to keep you glued to the pages.

This book rocks along to an action-packed climax, and definitely delivers on the promise shown by Depp in his first Spandau outing. I eagerly await the next.

I think Daniel is an author to watch. His second book has once again surprised me. He pulls you into Davids world and grips you so much that you keep turning those pages. I think David Spandau is every womans dream man. He is all man but can be gentle with the ladies. He seems like a character who loves hard but guarded. I also love the way Daniel gets you inside the mind of a star stalker as well. He will scare you but you will also pity the guy some not much but some. I see that Daniel has a great creative mind and really I think this storyline out did his first book if that is possible since I loved that one too. I would highly suggest ordering this book. If you love romance with some thrills and some adventure and some chills then order this one today. Well Mr. Depp you have done it again! I cant wait for Daniels next book I want to know what Davids next adventure will be.

"Babylon Nights" is Daniel Depp's highly entertaining second book in the PI David Spandau series--another clever send up of the Hollywood film industry. Knocked for a loop by his recent divorce, a booze-shakey Spandau takes on movie siren Anna Mayhew as a client. Anna is the target of a loony L.A. hair-burner who is obsessed with her and on a mission with a straight razor to spend some quality time with his idol. The psychopath's stalking has finally been noticed by the actress, who is otherwise preoccupied planning her own possible suicide. Spandau is hired to head off the stalker, and the action eventually shifts to the Cannes Film Festival where Actress Anna has a gig as a judge. Add to the mix a rich stew of Southern California and Southern French characters, most notably a Hollywood pimp named Special who has his own reasons for stalking the stalker, and you have something resembling a collaboration between Charles Dickens, Carl Hiaasen, and Elmore Leonard.

The action in this story is matched by the wit of the characters' dialogues. It's all wide open and close to over the top, but author Depp manages the plot and characters cleverly and keeps everything moving entertainingly. The book is at its best when the focus iis on interaction between particular characters. David Spandau as the principled but messed-up lead is well-matched with the principled but messed-up Ann Mayhew. The loony-toon stalker with the razor, Vincent Perec, is a convincing menace, but the standout star of the piece is often Special, the opera loving pimp, who is far beyond street smart and is unmatched in opportunism and ability to survive.

"Babylon Nights" is a lot of fun. Always entertaining and fast-moving. Highly recommended.

I loved Depp's first book, Loser's Town, so this one was a disappointment. In Loser's Town, the author did a colorful and believable job of creating criminals both too drugged and too stupid to succeed at their chosen profession. But in Babylon, Depp tried to write a sociopath, and he only succeeded in creating a two-dimensional cartoon character. In theater terms, he "chewed the scenery." I hope for more, his next time around.

This book reminds me of the old time "private eye" books and movies. The characters are great and the action moves. I read Depp's first book, so I was familiar with the main character. You don't have to read the first book to enjoy this one. I wish Depp could have revealed what happened to the two main characters at the end of the book, but I guess he will do that in his next one. I highly reccommend this book.

I ordered this book but it never made it. I contacted the seller and they refunded my money they where very nice to deal with and I will shop with them again .