Done Deal: A Novel [Hardcover]

Les Standiford (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1993

When his wife is killed in a suspicious accident, Florida real-estate agent Johnny Deal becomes convinced that she was murdered by a man who plans to profit from the arrival of professional baseball in the state. By the author of Spill. $35,000 ad/promo.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This novel, by the author of Spill ( LJ 5/15/91), will have readers on the edge of their seats. The setting is Miami. Our hero is Jack Deal, just trying to make a go of life. Several attempts to harm Deal have been made, without his knowing why. The latest attempt mistakenly sends his wife off a bridge into the Intracoastal Waterway. The car is found, but her body is not. Deal doesn't know who his enemies are, what they want, or why. We know they want his small building site, located in an area sewn up by the amoral Raoul Alacazar. The plot involves expansion team baseball, new stadiums, and, of course, big money. How Deal figures it out, exacts vengeance, and rescues the fair maiden make for a smashing good novel. Well recommended for public libraries.
- Dawn L. Anderson, North Richland Hills P.L., Tex.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

Satire-laden Florida thriller from Standiford (Spill, 1991)- -with quirky characters, vivid settings, and riveting action done in Sam Peckinpah's slo-mo style. Baseball is happening in southern Florida. Down-on-his-luck Johnny Deal, son of a one-time prosperous developer, seemingly for old times' sake has been invited to a soir‚e aboard his dad's old pal's yacht--a gathering of movers and shakers hoping to bring the national pastime to Miami. Despite Thornton Penfield's opulent hospitality, the evening is a maudlin reminder of days past. So Deal and pregnant wife Janice escape early. The next day Deal's on his way to the Little Havana fourplex he's renovating (the last of his father's legacy) when a driver tries to run him off the road. To boot, his brakes fail and Deal narrowly avoids the ensuing multi-vehicle accident. This marks the onset of a rapid-fire series of debacles. First, Deal's wife is forced off a bridge and assumed drowned. Then he finds himself the focal point of mishaps orchestrated (he'll learn) by Cuban racketeer Raoul Alcazar. All this is niftily centered around the real-life question of who profits when a new major-league baseball franchise is awarded--one of Alcazar's hoods, black ex-footballer Leon Straight, has all the best lines on that and other subjects. A memorable creation, Leon is an all-time bad dude, offing several people and a dog in new and interesting ways. For himself, Deal is sided by dead best buddy Flivey Penfield and Homer the dwarf. Throw all of the above into the mix with Standiford's depiction of Miami's exotic landscape, melting-pot populace, and social ills for a page-turner of the first water. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 261 pages
• Publisher: Harpercollins; First Edition edition (October 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060177314
• ISBN-13: 978-0060177317
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,627,777 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid debut novel, November 5, 2001

By 

Carol Peterson Hennekens (Colorado Springs, CO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Done Deal (Paperback)

What is it about Florida? It's a magnet for "unusual" characters and this book is full of them. The Kirkus review in the editorial section does a wonderful job of telling the key plot points so I won't be redundant.

I liked a number of things about this book. Johnny/Jack Deal is a very appealing protagonist. While I will always have a bit of a crush on Travis McGee, he isn't exactly a everyday sort of guy. Deal is very much an everyman caught in a vortex of events that are beyond his control or understanding. He responds with a nice mix of anger, humor and action. The supporting cast is also well done - particularly Leon, the heavy for the bad guys. He's strickly a character out of the Hiaasen school of Florida wackos.

I'll be reading the sequel to this book (Raw Deal) soon although I am a bit perplexed as to how Deal will continue to find himself involved in murder. My father was a contractor and the most crime he ever saw was the periodic stealing of materials from a job site. Still, if Jessica Fletcher could encounter a body a week, I'm sure Deal can too.

4.0 out of 5 stars FIRST JOHNNY DEAL MYSTERY, April 24, 2011

By 

James L. Woolridge "Wooly in PSL, FL." (Sunny Florida) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Done Deal: A Novel (Hardcover)

If you are into Florida mysteries and there are several, then Les Sandiford brings you another with the Johnny Deal series book one, DONE DEAL. A solid start for this author in the field of series. I think the series might be better as it goes, but as with so many first efforts we get so much set up information. A little slow for me but promising.