Beverly Hills Dead (Rick Barron Novel) [Mass Market Paperback]

Stuart Woods (Author)

Book Description

Series: Rick Barron Novel | Publication Date: March 27, 2012

1940s Hollywood comes alive in this sequel to The Prince of Beverly Hills.

Rick Barron—former Beverly Hills cop, now head of production of Centurion pictures—returns in a page turning novel of murder, political intrigue, and betrayal. Set in 1940s Hollywood, it is the era of the “Red Scare”—when almost anyone could be suspect.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this tepid sequel to 2004's The Prince of Beverly Hills, bestseller Woods revisits the late 1940s but fails to realistically evoke the era of the HUAC hearings, Hollywood blacklists and the waning days of big studios and the star system. Demoted L.A. detective Rick Barron recently quit the force to head security for Centurion Studios and has now morphed into the studio's head of production. Using this new power at the studio, Rick is in charge of selecting leading actors and scouting settings for a gritty western written by famous playwright Sidney Brooks. Centurion is a worthy stand-in for the typical studio of the era, but the Hollywood blacklist story and the untimely disappearance of one of the stars is familiar territory, and Woods doesn't break any new ground. Longtime fans of Woods's Stone Barrington series are sure to enjoy certain aspects of the story, but newcomers are likely to be disappointed. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"Woods writes with smooth confidence as famous names add spice to a diverting summer read that simmers but never gets hard-boiled." -Kirkus Reviews on The Prince of Beverly Hills

--This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Signet; Reprint edition (March 27, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451224787
• ISBN-13: 978-0451224781
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 4.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #488,319 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Stuart Woods is the author of forty-four novels, including the New York Times-bestselling Stone Barrington series and Holly Barker series. The last twenty-eight of them have been New York Times best-sellers. He is an avid private pilot, flying his own jet on two book tours a year. His latest novel is Santa Fe Edge,to be published on September 21st. You may see his tour schedule and learn more about the author on his website, www.stuartwoods.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Heading for the pasture?, January 23, 2008

By 

Don Cajone "CJB" (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beverly Hills Dead (Hardcover)

Mr. Woods has been a favorite author of mine for some time now. Unfortunately each new book lately is less and less. Almost getting like Patterson in that the amount of blank paper (half chapters, half pages, etc.) means the books are realistically only 1/2". Definately not novels!

The Beverly Hills Dead has finally left me dismayed with Mr. Woods. Hardly any action whatsoever. Even at halfway through the book nothing really happens.

I never thought I'd say it or see it but this latest of Mr. Woods was a waste of my money.

So - Mr. Woods, I will buy your next book and hope it brings back a good story as in the past. If not, you've lost a reader (and a buyer) from then on. Oh, and how about a book that has enough reading to last more than 1-2 days.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Such a shame..........., January 25, 2008

By 

Garnett Walker (Dallas, Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Beverly Hills Dead (Hardcover)

It is a shame to read such "dribble" from the same author that wrote "White Cargo", Santa Fe Rules", "Palindrome" and "Chiefs".

Stuart Woods has been on a continuing downhill spiral in his recent books and with this one, he has finally hit the bottom. This is by far one of the worst books I have read in some time; quite a statement from someone that reads three books a week.

Perhaps Mr. Woods should start concentrating on "quality" as opposed to his current fixation with "quantity".

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Stuart Woods grinds out another undistinguished story, January 21, 2008

By 

Jerry Saperstein (Evanston, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Beverly Hills Dead (Hardcover)

Stuart Woods writes well. And that's the only compliment I can still pay him. His last two Stone Barrington novels were utter bores and "Beverly Hills Dead" is a fast, unexciting and ultimately dull read as well.

Rick Barron returns, quite improbably, as a movie director as well as production head for Centurion Studios. Quite a ride for a busted detective only a few years before who witnessed a traffic accident involving the studio's biggest star - and covered up the truth.

It is now 1947 and, depending on the paragraph, Centurion Studios is either a small time operation or a big time studio able to put its movies into the prestigious Radio City Music Hall for Christmas, quite a feat.

Rick Barron had the potential of becoming a pretty good character. Woods, possibly in his haste to crank out one title after another, has reduced Barron to a cardboard cutout. The man is in total control, no crisis too big for him, no detail too small. He is married to Glenna Gleason, coincidentally the studio's big female star. They are building a beach house in Malibu and they visit the construction site. Glenna spots a "half-naked" construction worker, Vance Calder, who it turns out is a 19 year old naif actor from Britain. Poof! Vance becomes the star of "Bitter Creek", Centurion's next picture. Woods seems to become a bit confused or forgetful. Rick Barron and Eddie Harris, his boss, set the budget at a million dollars. At one point, this is referred to as the most expensive picture ever produced by Centurion . . . and it is cast with total, inexperienced unknowns! At the same time, Centurion spends money with abandon on a company owned DC-3 and another charter aircraft. Eddie Harris buys real estate with a freewheeling abandon. In short, the story has more than a few internal conflicts.

Vance Calder succumbs to lust for Susie Stafford, his co-star on "Bitter Creek". Stuart Woods has a thing for unnecessary and frankly silly sex scenes. He writes them with the overheated penache of an adolescent boy. In this case, Susie Stafford is a woman with a "past": she is a bisexual. This comes into play when her naked, battered corpse turns up in a garbage dump. The murder and the ensuing hunt for the killer is a sideshow - and, frankly, a boring one. The "surprise ending" is just plain amateurish.

The real story here is supposedly the "Red Scare" of the late 1940s and early 1950s.

Sidney Brooks, the writer of "Bitter Creek" is summoned to appear before the House UnAmerican Activities Committee. Brooks is a Communist Party member. Poor Sidney. All kinds of bad things happen to him because he refuses to testify and name names. Now the interesting thing is that Woods starts off sounding like a left-winger, mechanically reciting the mantra that Communists were "persecuted". By the end, though, he provides a surprisingly well rounded and reasonably accurate description of the HUAC era.

But the real problem here is that there is no compelling plot. It's just one incident conveniently knitted to another. For example, Rick Barron's assistant is an ardent, ambitious young man, Leo Goldman, who is an anti-Communist. We are supposed to worry because Barron's wife, it turns out, was listed as a Communist Party member as well. But like so many other things in this novel, it fizzles out.

None of the characters are well developed. None have any depth or believability. Woods has thrown a lot of stuff into the pot, but never makes it boil. At best, "Beverly Hills Dead" is on simmer. Woods' writing is, as always, smooth, but not good enough to carry the reader over all the plot holes or cover up the shallowness of the characters.

It's not awful, but frankly this is the third Stuart Woods novel in a row that has disappointed me. I used to find Woods' stories a simple way to relax with a light read. Now they are so empty, so ephemeral that they feel far more like a slog than a delight. I'll be taking a pass on Woods for the forseeable future.

Jerry