Last Ditch: A Leo Waterman Mystery (Leo Waterman Mysteries) [Hardcover]

G.M. Ford (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1999 | Series: Leo Waterman Mysteries

Leo has put aside the ghosts of his childhood to take up residence in his deceased parents' mansion after a complete renovation. To clean up the neglected backyard, Leo calls upon his most trusted allies, "the Boys", a tenacious collective of hapless barflies whose pension checks arrive care of a low-rent gin mill. But as they tear down a dilapidated greenhouse, the motley wrecking crew uncovers a human skeleton that belongs to Leo's late father's most despised enemy: a muckraking, ultra-conservative journalist who vanished twenty years ago. With the evidence stacked against "Will Bill" Waterman, Leo feels compelled to clear his father's name by digging up the past -- and trying not to get buried beneath it.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

G.M. Ford's fifth book about Seattle private detective Leo Waterman begins with a backyard jolt: the Boys (a group of ancient alcoholics who Leo looks after) dig up the 30-year-old remains of a gay-bashing right-wing newspaper columnist named Peerless Price while doing some work on the grounds of the mansion belonging to Leo's late father, politician Wild Bill Waterman.

It looks very much as though Wild Bill did indeed shoot and bury his arch enemy. And precisely because both a starchy relative and the entire Seattle PD warn him against it, Leo proceeds to risk life, limb, and his ancient Fiat convertible to prove his father's innocence. What he finds out--from Wild Bill's old driver, an ex-cop called Bermuda Schwartz, and other assorted ghosts from the past--provides a wild and often touching story that combines recent headlines (about the smuggling of Chinese immigrants) with moments of personal pain. That same combination is present in Ford's other books about Waterman: Slow Burn, Who in Hell Is Wanda Fuca?, The Bum's Rush, and Cast in Stone. --Dick Adler

From Publishers Weekly

It's hard work trying to keep a series fresh, and in Ford's fifth novel about Seattle private detective Leo Waterman (Slow Burn, etc.) the strain shows. Most of the recurring jokes?about Leo's powerful family and their embarrassment about his work, about his dysfunctional Fiat and his animosity toward the police department?fall flat. Even the Boys, the band of homeless drunks Waterman supports and employs from time to time, aren't quite as engaging anymore. When the 30-year-old remains of a gay-bashing, right-wing newspaper columnist named Peerless Price turn up on the grounds of the mansion belonging to Leo's late father, politician Wild Bill Waterman, it begins to look as if Wild Bill had shot his arch enemy. Because both his starchy uncle Pat and the Seattle PD warn him against it, Leo risks life, limb and ancient convertible to prove his father's innocence. What he finds out?from Wild Bill's old driver and other ghosts from the past (including an earless Oriental phantom straight out of Sax Rohmer; see the review of The Revenge of Kali-Ra, below)?proves more bizarre than exciting.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; 1st edition (March 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380975572
• ISBN-13: 978-0380975570
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,696,963 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid Whodunnit, June 21, 2000

By 

Aaron Steel - See all my reviews

This review is from: Last Ditch: A Leo Waterman Mystery (Leo Waterman Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

I've been looking for new authors recently, and decided to give Ford a try. I am happy that I did. His main character Leo Waterman is in the same vein as Robert Crais' Elvis Cole, only perhaps not quite as funny. In Last Ditch, Leo, in the course of doing some renovations to his property, comes across a buried body. The body turns out to be that of his late politician fathers biggest enemy, and has been missing for some 30 years. Obviously Leo's father is the number one suspect, so Leo sets out to find the truth. Leo is a great character in the genre, tough, but not unbelievably so, very human, and of course wisecracking. There are lots of twists and turns and misdirections in this well plotted novel. The writing is also above the quality often found in the genre, Ford really puts the reader into the scene. If you like a good mystery, Last Ditch is a good place to look.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Ford does much better than the Edsel, October 20, 2000

By 

Mark S. Winger (Wood Dale, IL United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Last Ditch: A Leo Waterman Mystery (Leo Waterman Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

This is definitely a quality book. It is a very well developed story with interesting characters. The story builds very well and the conclusion is satisfying. I would recommend this book to any avid mystery reader. I am a big fan of Robert Parker, Robert Crais, and Harlan Coben. While Leo Waterman doesn't have the sidekick that the hero in those books does, he has much the same demeanor as Spenser, Elvis Cole, and Myron Bolitar. The wit isn't quite as snappy, but still enjoyable. These are only minor comments and what prevents me from giving the book 5 stars, don't let it prevent you from reading this book. I have a ton of books, but I am sure that I will pick up another one of Ford's novels sometime in the near future.

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Read!, September 12, 2009

By 

Don M. Haselhuhn - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Last Ditch: A Leo Waterman Mystery (Leo Waterman Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

As always, G.M. Ford gives us what we want; great one liners and many bum antics! Leo Waterman is in form, and if you don't know what that means, you need to read this book!