Canary [Mass Market Paperback]

Nathan Aldyne (Author)

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 198 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; 1st edition (October 12, 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345331672
• ISBN-13: 978-0345331670
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,948,867 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sad that this is the absolute end of this series, April 18, 2000

By 

"bettynose" (Toronto, Ontario) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Canary: A Daniel Valentine and Clarisse Lovelace Mystery (Alyson Classics Library) (Paperback)

This series by Nathan Aldyne (who I just recently found out was not a real person but a nom de plume for two writers collaborating) was what got me hooked on the genre of gay mysteries. I loved the characters, the settings, the plots, the humour, everything!

I actually read them when they first came out (!) in the early-to-mid 80's. I think I was able to read Vermilion and Cobalt back-to-back in 1983 (since they were published in '80 and '82, respectively) and eagerly awaited the next installment, which turned out to be Slate in '84 (followed by Canary in '86). I was very disappointed when nothing new came out in '88 or anytime after. It's one of the strengths of the Internet that I can now know why this series ended then (one of the collaborators died).

Anyway, I'd give all of the books in this series 5 stars since I re-read them all regularly and still laugh. I'm glad that they have been reissued since my little paperbacks are getting quite yellowed and brittle and I can now replace them.

If you enjoy good mysteries filled with humour and a gay twist, you'll enjoy any of these books. As with many series, it's more enjoyable to read them in order.

5.0 out of 5 stars Last of the series but a very good one, July 8, 2009

By 

Wayne M. Malin "Preppy" (Malden MA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Canary: A Daniel Valentine and Clarisse Lovelace Mystery (Alyson Classics Library) (Paperback)

Gay bartender Dan Valentine and straight law student Clarisse Lovelace both own a gay bar in Boston named Slate. Things are going great--until a necktie murderer shows up...and seems to meet all his victims at Slate. Valentine and Lovelace (along with the Boston police) try to find out who the killer is.

Last of the series but a VERY good ending. It moves quickly, the jokes fly fast and furious and there's a truly great supporting cast of characters--especially Niobe and Newt. The murders are more graphic here than the previous entries but they don't dwell on them. This is not the best of the series--"Vermilion" and "Cobalt" (the first two) are the best. "Slate" (the third) wasn't as good but it's still worth reading (and it's the shortest book of the series). This matches the first two. This just brings back gay Boston of the late 1980s perfectly. It's too bad one of the authors (Michael McDowell) came down with AIDS in (I believe) 1987. Him and Dennis Schuetz were actually planning a fifth book but that never came about. Still the four we have a great! Fun, entertaining and a clear picture of gay life in Boston in the 1980s.