Murder Manual [Paperback]

Steven Womack (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 6, 1998

ALL I REALLY NEED TO KNOW ABOUT MURDER
I LEARNED IN NASHVILLE

The bestselling toast of Tennessee, author Robert Jefferson Reed has made big bucks with his little book of folksy homilies like "Never go to bed angry" and "Eat your vegetables." He should have included "Don't commit murder." For when Reed's wife hires P.I. Harry James Denton to catch her hubby in a tryst with a sexy secretary, Harry finds the author of Life's Little Maintenance Manual strangled and drowned in his own hot tub.

Caught at the scene of the crime, Harry is pegged as the prime suspect and must work double duty to avoid the specter of prison--and to pluck a murderer out of a dead man's tangled past. . . .


From the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

New Orleans private investigator Harry James Denton is down on his luck: his money has run out and his pregnant girlfriend has broken up with him. Then, he's asked to find a bestselling author who's cheating on his wife. Unfortunately, Harry finds the writerAdeadAand he's the prime suspect. Harry, whose first outing in Dead Folks' Blues won his creator an Edgar, is still an appealing character, and once again Womack captures the laid-back, old-boy network of New Orleans. However, the plot isn't strong; there's a subplot involving Harry's landlady and another involving corruption at the coroner's officeAboth of which overshadow Harry's current case. Fans of Harry Denton will read along, but readers wanting a captivating whodunit won't find it here.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Inside Flap

ALL I REALLY NEED TO KNOW ABOUT MURDER
I LEARNED IN NASHVILLE

The bestselling toast of Tennessee, author Robert Jefferson Reed has made big bucks with his little book of folksy homilies like "Never go to bed angry" and "Eat your vegetables." He should have included "Don't commit murder." For when Reed's wife hires P.I. Harry James Denton to catch her hubby in a tryst with a sexy secretary, Harry finds the author of Life's Little Maintenance Manual strangled and drowned in his own hot tub.

Caught at the scene of the crime, Harry is pegged as the prime suspect and must work double duty to avoid the specter of prison--and to pluck a murderer out of a dead man's tangled past. . . .


From the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (January 6, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345461894
• ISBN-13: 978-0345461896
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,295,974 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Couldn't put it down!, July 31, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Murder Manual (Harry James Denton Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

Murder Manual was my second Steven Womack book, the first was Chain of Fools. I started reading at 6:00 in the evening and didn't put it down until I finished it at midnight! Steven Womack's characters are so believable I felt like I couldn't stop reading until I found out what happened to them. The only other author that can make me read like that is Clive Cussler. Now I have two favorite authors!

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderfully written, wildly entertaining, November 2, 1999

By 

Susan Wiggs "writer&dreamer" (Rolling Bay WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Murder Manual (Harry James Denton Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

This is my favorite sort of detective novel, one with colorful characters and a hero who is all-too-human, told with clarity and grace. What an excellent read. If you like books by James Lee Burke, you'll like this even more. Highly recommended.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mr. Womack's written another great Denton detective novel., May 22, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Murder Manual (Harry James Denton Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

I think this is Mr. Womack's best Harry James Denton work to date. The storyline and character development are believable, and he describes Nashville and the surrounding areas, such as Williamson County where I live, perfectly. Be sure to read the Denton series in order in which they were written to track the character developments, and also see the change in the political climate in the Metro Nashville area.