Federal Fag [Hardcover]

Fred Hunter (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1998

After spotting an old college flame starring in a rented porn film, Alex Reynolds tracks him down to an L.A. address-only to find him murdered on his apartment floor. Suddenly, his occasional CIA contact is very interested, and the odd spy team of Alex, his lover, and his mother, Jean, must scour the gay porn industry to find the murderer.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

While his lover Peter attends a class reunion, narrator Alex, watches a porn flick. When he recognizes his former college lover, he decides the guy must need help, arranges a meeting, then finds the man murdered. Alex's British mother appears out of nowhere to help him fend off the police, but a subsequent murder forces them to reveal their sometime CIA status (see Government Gay, St. Martin's, 1997). So Alex, Peter, and mom investigate, learning more than they needed to know about the porn industry. Despite the rather feeble plot, the salacious subject matter and mom provide comic relief, albeit without much finesse. A marginal purchase.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"An absolutely delightful whodunit! Hunter creates a cast of characters we'll want to visit again and again. Government Gay is a welcome addition to the growing ranks of gay sleuths!" --Ellen Hart, author of Wicked Games

"Murder and mayhem full of delicious wit and dialogue. In addition to the CIA, the fast-paced action involves the FBI, the Mob, and the druggy world of the exploitative gay porn industry. Rounded out with movie references aplenty and the presence of the delightfully fey Jean, this should please lots of readers." --Booklist

"Quick paced...filled with action...a very enjoyable and worthwhile read." --Our Own

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 259 pages
• Publisher: St Martins Pr; 1st edition (June 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312185804
• ISBN-13: 978-0312185800
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.7 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,078,612 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A lighthearted, enjoyable must-read, May 15, 2000

By 

Bob Dunham - See all my reviews

This review is from: Federal Fag: An Alex Reynolds Mystery (Alex Reynolds Mysteries) (Paperback)

I really love Hunter's Alex Reynolds books because they are so entirely unique. They blow-apart stereotypes and everything we've come to expect in the gay-mystery sub-genre: the leading character, Alex Reynolds and his partner Peter, are deeply in love and committed, and Alex's mother is a wonderful and inspired addition. It's a relief to read a series in which the characters are not constantly whining about the plight of being gay, and where the stories don't necessarily revolve around gay issues, even though that does enter into it a bit. Unlike many gay mystery series, you get the feeling that these guys have lives outside their sexuality.

Federal Fag is a welcome addition to the series, as Alex and his family try to discover who killed a porn star-former friend of Alex's. I found myself laughing out loud over and over again (especially when Alex's mother shows up for the first time). Hunter hits just the right balance between the humor, which is first rate, and the mystery, which is a well-thought-out, constant source of surprise.

If you like more than a little humor with your mystery, you'll love it. This is a wonderful book!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Federal Deficit, June 29, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Federal Fag (Hardcover)

Yahoo! Jean is back! Yes, the fiesty, funny star of the Alex Reynold's series returns for another set of wacky and wild adventures centered around rescuing her apparently totally helpless son Alex (and his equally helpless husband, Peter). If you loved Jean in GOVERNMENT GAY, you get twice as much of her in FEDERAL FAG. And what's not to love? Of course, if for some reason you were hoping book two of the Alex Reynold's series might center more on Alex and Peter (they even LIVE with Mom), might have a little more spice and less sugar, might develop and expand what is a sorta interesting plot...uh,keep hoping. Hunter seems set on playing to every stereotype of a gay man. He goes for straight laughs (pun intended) and doesn't bother breaking it up with any tension or excitement. I like a good joke as much as the next guy, but this one is wearing thin. THE ADVENTURES OF ME MUM is not what I was looking for when I opened this book. Give Jean her own series, Fred!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Troubling Trio, April 27, 2005

By 

J. Michael Click (Fort Worth, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Federal Fag: An Alex Reynolds Mystery (Alex Reynolds Mysteries) (Paperback)

The second book in the Alex Reynolds series vaguely follows the same plot pattern as its predecessor, "Government Gay": Alex inadvertently becomes involved in a covert government operation; decides to conduct his own investigation for personal reasons and despite instructions to the contrary from the authorities; puts himself, his "husband", and his mother in mortal danger; and eventually resolves the case after learning that one or more persons is not who they seem to be. It's a pleasant enough formula, and writer Hunter balances out the mystery angles with just enough humor to make "Federal Fag" a diverting light read.

However ... two off-putting aspects of Hunter's protagonists that appeared below the surface in the first book become more pronounced - and grating - in this second novel. One is the cutesy relationship between Reynolds and his squeaky clean husband Peter. Alex and Peter come off as just a bit too superior and a bit too perfect, both as gay men and especially as a gay couple. To be specific, they're uncomfortably snobby and condescending toward the world in general and gay society in particular, and it's not an attractive trait. The other turn-off is the couple's unnaturally close relationship with Alex's eccentric British mother, with whom they live and work. A supportive, accepting parent is one thing, but Jean is intrusively involved in Alex and Peter's lives, so much so that the three appear to be codependent to an unhealthy degree. It's not good when the protagonists' quirks begin to overshadow other considerations ... like plot ... and this increasingly threatens to become a problem in the otherwise likeable "Federal Fag".