Edsel (Detroit Crime Series #4) [Hardcover]

Loren D. Estleman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1995

The Pulitzer Prize nominee and author of the acclaimed Detroit Trilogy returns with a hard-hitting tale of power-hungry executives, self-righteous union bosses, ruthless mobsters, and the biggest flop ever to roll off a Motor City assembly line.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Three decades of Detroit history provide settings for Estleman's acclaimed Amos Walker mysteries, including Whiskey River. Again conjuring up the Motor City of the 1950s, the author chronicles the second career of ex-journalist Connie Minor, who is signed up by Ford Motor Company to promote Henry Ford II's still secret dreamcar, named after Ford's much loved (by him) and much hurt (by the autocratic Henry I) father, Edsel. Connie isn't sure that he likes either the car's name or its design, particularly the grille. He's also confused about his lovelife, held by his acerbic, longtime affection for Agnes but also drawn to spunky, younger Janet, a Ford secretary who is the kind of girl to help a man forget advancing years and a diabetic condition. Hired to sell "eleven million E-cars," Estleman's likable hero must also find out who set up the hit on a union boss and to figure out how Ford's designs become public knowledge so quickly. The narrative may linger too long on the size of a lapel or the color of a car interior or living room (both usually bilious), but Estleman's affection for the time and place are impossible to resist. This tale may not be as much fun as a Walker caper, but its quieter pleasures are as rewarding.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Has-been Detroit journalist Connie Minor is hand-picked by Henry Ford II to create the promotional campaign for his top-secret brainchild-the Edsel. On the strength of his reputation for clever turns of phrase and keeping confidences, Minor is catapulted from a nothing job in a small ad house to a window office on mahogany row near the legendary Henry. He's scarcely settled in when he gets caught between Walter Reuther and a Communist-hunting local politician who blackmails him into tapping his old underworld contacts for leads on a plot to kill Reuther. Bouncing from the mob to the union to the boardroom, Minor not only uncovers the murder plan but a stealthy scheme to sabotage the Edsel as well. Would the car have bombed even if it hadn't looked so weird? Estleman, who is equally as masterful with thrillers (Motown, LJ 6/15/91) as with Westerns (City of Widows, LJ 3/15/94), has crafted a swiftly entertaining story of Detroit in the 1950s with all the panache of a Raymond Chandler and a keen eye for historical detail. Highly recommended for all public libraries.
Susan Clifford, Hughes Aircraft Co. Lib., Los Angeles
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 291 pages
• Publisher: Mysterious Press; First Edition edition (March 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0892965525
• ISBN-13: 978-0892965526
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,638,529 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Since the appearance of his first novel in 1976, Loren D. Estleman has written more than 65 books and hundreds of short stories and articles. Alone (Dec 2009, Forge Books) is the second in a new series about L.A. film detective Valentino, and features Greta Garbo.

To kick off the new decade, Estleman's The Book of Murdock (eighth in the U.S. Deputy Marshal Page Murdock series) will appear in March and, to celebrate the 30 year anniversary of Private Detective Amos Walker, The Left-Handed Dollar will publish in December. It's the 20th novel in the award-winning series.

An authority on both criminal history and the American West, Estleman has been called the most critically acclaimed author of his generation. He has been nominated for the National Book Award and the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Allan Poe Award.

He has received seventeen national writing awards: four Shamuses from the Private Eye Writers of America, five Spurs from the Western Writers of America, two American Mystery Awards from Mystery Scene Magazine, two Outstanding Mystery Writer of the Year awards from Popular Fiction Monthly, two Stirrup Awards for outstanding articles in the Western Writers of America magazine, The Roundup, and three Western Heritage Awards from the National Cowboy Hall of Fame. In 1987, the Michigan Foundation of the Arts presented him with its award for literature. In 1997, the Michigan Library Association named him the recipient of the Michigan Author's Award. In 2007, Nicotine Kiss was named a Notable Book by the Library of Michigan.

Estleman graduated from Eastern Michigan University in 1974 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature and Journalism. On April 27, 2002, EMU presented him with an honorary doctorate in letters. He left the job market in 1980 to write full time. He lives in Michigan and is married to writer Deborah Morgan. For more information, please visit his website: www.lorenestleman.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More great stuff., June 10, 2011

By 

Robert Thomas (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Edsel (Detroit Crime Series #4) (Hardcover)

Estleman does a hell of a job with this one, as with his other novels of Detroit. Most importantly, he knows the city well enough to make fictional characters in real events believable.