Private Heat: An Art Hardin Mystery (Art Hardin Mysteries) [Hardcover]

Robert Bailey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 25, 2002 | Series: Art Hardin Mysteries

Private detective and retired colonel Art Hardin usually stays away from the flashy kind of PI work, preferring to pay his bills by checking up on false disability claims, routine surveillance, and the like. So when the senior partner of one of the premier legal firms in Grand Rapids approaches Hardin about a job protecting his niece from her soon-to-be ex-husband for a couple of days, Hardin isn't exactly eager to take on the job-especially since the niece herself is under house arrest pending a murder investigation of her former boss, and the sudden disappearance of eleven million dollars. However, Hardin finds that the fee offered is too great to pass up. Of course, after a hatchet attack, a house burnt down, and a few violent encounters with some crooked cops, Hardin can hardly wait for the case to be over...

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

While this debut novel, winner of the First Coast Writers Festival's Josiah W. Bancroft Jr. Award, has its faults, it deserves praise for sheer action and suspense. PI Hardin, a retired counter intelligence officer, is asked by a prominent Grand Rapids, Mich., lawyer to protect his niece from her estranged police officer husband, who is likely to beat her up on sight.

The husband turns out to be the least of Hardin's worries, as the plot immediately becomes increasingly violent and complex, requiring one to pay close attention to who did what to whom and why or be lost forever. Bailey has a good sassy sense of humor. He also has a peculiar vernacular of his own. For instance, in a scene in which two characters smoke, the author writes, "He started plumbing his costume for a cigarette." Plumbing? His "costume" is a pair of overalls. A few lines later: "I took a long pull on my smoke, extracted it from my face, and looked out over the river." Now, for a bit of local color: "Popsicle sticks weathered to gray and the silver pull tabs from beverage cans littered the ground." Pull tabs on the ground? This detail would seem to set the action a generation or so ago, but in fact period and, for that matter, place are irrelevant in this hard-boiled homage, in which the villains get stacked up like cordwood. Bailey's prose can be eccentric, but there's no denying his narrative drive, which keeps the reader moving right along until the last page. Agent, Andrew Zack.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Private detective Art Hardin reluctantly serves as "minder" for a high-class lawyer's niece, who plans to have the abusive cop she's divorcing served with a restraining order. Coincidentally, she may be a material witness in the murder of her boss/lover and the disappearance of millions of dollars. Well-focused episodes feature corrupt cops; the smart-ass niece; her hulking, drug-addicted, and soon-to-be murdered ex-husband; and the opinionated, almost-framed "hero." Clever plotting, crisp prose, and thrilling action commend this to all collections.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 356 pages
• Publisher: M.Evans & Company (January 25, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0871319705
• ISBN-13: 978-0871319708
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #646,741 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Robert Bailey spent five years as a corporate security director in the city of Detroit and twenty years as a licensed private investigator. His first novel, PRIVATE HEAT, an action-packed private-eye thriller, won the Josiah W. Bancroft Award at the Florida First Coast Writer's Festival in 1998 and was nominated for the 2003 Shamus Award, given by the Private Eye Writers of America.

A Vietnam-era draftee, he retired from the military as a reservist and a field-grade officer. An award-winning combat pistol shot, he returned to his first love, writing, when he was injured on the job and no longer able to work the street.

Robert has three grown sons and four grandchildren. PRIVATE HEAT, featuring PI Art Hardin, was published by M. Evans & Co. in the winter of 2002. A second Art Hardin mystery novel, DYING EMBERS, was released in March 2003, and a third, DEAD BANG, was published by M. Evans in January 2007. Also in January 2007, MYSTERY SCENE magazine named Hardin one of its top 100 private eyes.

Bob's latest projects include a fourth novel, Deja Noir, and a screenplay, For Love and Money, about an armored car robbery. His Art Hardin series is soon to be released in ebook format. Please visit him on facebook or at his website, robertebaileyauthor.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic!! Engaging, funny, a great story!, February 27, 2002

By 

Benjamin Eavey (Kentwood, MI USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Private Heat: An Art Hardin Mystery (Art Hardin Mysteries) (Hardcover)

I haven't read a lot of mystery novels, but when I happened to run into Robert Bailey while he was speaking at a local bookstore, I decided to buy his first book and give it a shot. He was a genuinely nice guy, and you could tell that he really, really liked what he had written. That sold me right there.

It took me a couple of chapters to get into the book, but after that I was completely hooked. Art Hardin, the main character, is very believable detective, and I liked the fact that he's a family man and not the typical gumshoe that you see in the movies. I loved that he kept getting arrested, and I loved that he was always on top of every situation. The story moves along at a whirlwind pace, the action unfolding in a way that keeps you wanting more and more right up until the end. This book is addictive! The characters are real, the author has a great sense of humor, and the plot is both well thought out and well presented. I laughed out loud a few times while reading the book, which was a surprise.

I might be a bit partial, because the book is set in my home town. As a matter of fact, Art's office is located a mile and a half from my house! Robert Bailey has depicted the adventures of a detective in Grand Rapids in a way that I would have never imagined possible, and it was a thrill to see so many of the places with which I'm familiar in print.

This novel will appeal to readers of all types. I know that for certain, because I myself am more into SF and dark fantasy than anything else, and I loved this book. I'll be recommending it to others, and I can't wait for the second book in the series, which, according to Mr. Bailey, is set to be published soon.

Great job!!

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hold on to your hat! You're in for a ride., February 7, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Private Heat: An Art Hardin Mystery (Art Hardin Mysteries) (Hardcover)

It's tough to find a contemporary first book by an author--and a mystery, at that--as compelling and entertaining as PRIVATE HEAT by Robert Bailey. What a pleasant surprise. A gut-wrencher one moment, the reader laughs out loud the next. On top of it all, Bailey's experience as a private investigator lends the book a believability that pulls the reader right into the action.

The plot moves along quickly, as Bailey masterfully builds his characters. The reader cannot help but identify with the not-quite-smug protagonist, Art Hardin, and his sidekick, as well as the entire Hardin family--especially his wife, Wendy. Throw in his dead partner's widow, who holds the business pursestrings, and a few cops who don't take to a PI who continually gets ahead of them , and Bailey has woven a great setting for a dynamite murder case.

PRIVATE HEAT is loaded with the irony that underscores real life. In one scene, Hardin's wonderful "rotor"-tailed dog careens across a vehicle's hood to catch a frisbee while the cops, called to check out a shooting at Hardin's house, cheer him on.

Bailey's polished, well-turned phrases give the book impact. It's a damned good read, and the last page is the best. But don't cheat. You'll miss out on a great ride if you do.

Note: I hear the next book in the series, DYING EMBERS, is due out any time now.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Authenticity and action crafted by an emerging star!, August 25, 2002

By 

Erik Giles "terrorcellbook dot com" (Richmond, VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Private Heat: An Art Hardin Mystery (Art Hardin Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Authenticity is hard to come by in the world of fiction, but this first novel offers plenty.

The back of the dust jacket says the author is a military veteran as well an experienced private investigator. I have no doubt of this, for as I read 'Private Heat', it was obvious to me that Mr. Bailey has personally experienced the events which enabled him to craft and plot this excellent story.

His first hand experience not only allows him to accurately portray the technical details of a detective story, but, he is also able to strike the elusive and delicate balance between fiction and reality.

IE, "Private Heat" is not a 'true crime' novel, but it's entertaining and REAL at the same time.

"Private Heat" offers excellent dialogue and a well crafted plot. Highly recommended. Collectors should grab their own first printing of Mr. Baileys first novel while they still can. I'm looking forward to the next installment.