Saratoga Springs, the famous racing center, is again the setting for Stephen Dobyns's eighth mystery featuring Charlie Bradshaw, local cop turned private eye. This time, since Charlie is about to go on jury duty, his off-beat sidekick, Victor Plotz - "a high-on-pragmatism, low-on-ethics kind of guy" - agrees to poke around when wealthy horse owner Bernard Logan is kicked to death by a horse. Logan's death surely looks like an accident. Yet just a few days before, Logan had come looking for Charlie, convinced his wife wanted him dead. It soon turns out that a host of folks at Battlefield Farms don't much like each other. Then rats start popping up all over the place. Before the case is closed, there's plenty of mayhem and misdeed, including shenanigans at the race track. This is the kind of sophisticated, elegant story where Stephen Dobyns excels. And dedicated Dobyns fans need not fear; Charlie Bradshaw is very much on the scene. Once more the witty, moodily reflective investigator comes through as a "stand-up full-fashioned creation" (The New Yorker), with the irrepressible Victor Plotz as his perfect foil.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
PI Charlie Bradshaw and best friend Victor Plotz solve another mysterious death in New York's upstate horse-racing town of Saratoga Springs. Poet and novelist Dobyns ( Body Traffic ; The Wrestler's Cruel Study ) sends Charlie on jury duty in this, the eighth, entry in the series, giving center stage, and the narrator's role, to Vic. Bernard Logan, racehorse owner, offers Vic a larger than usual fee to find out if his wife and her lover are planning to kill him. Vic and Charlie, who's free on the following Saturday morning, arrive at Battlefield Farms to find Logan dead, apparently kicked to death by a horse. Following Charlie's directions, issued from the courthouse, Vic tries to learn more about the death, their client and the horse farm, where more suspicious deaths occur. Vic takes his work to heart and applies a method of interrogation that, unlike Charlie's serious, mild manner, offends and repels most of his suspects. Charlie and Vic pick their way through tangled acts of venality and homicidal hatred, including one ingeniously plotted death, before Charlie solves the case. Meanwhile Vic holds forth on women (older is better), sex (it's supposed to be fun) and religion (less is more) in a gruff and sometimes touching voice.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
Fearing that his wife wants him dead, a wealthy horse owner appeals to private eye Charlie Bradshaw for help. When a horse kicks the man to death shortly thereafter, Charlie and sidekick Victor Plotz uncover a host of bad feelings and nasty characters. Special fare for the "horsey" set.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hilarious,
By A Customer
This review is from: Saratoga Backtalk (A Charlie Bradshaw Mystery) (Hardcover)
A funny and irreverent book. Just the way I like 'em.
3.0 out of 5 stars
Wisecracking Mystery,
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This review is from: Saratoga Backtalk: A Charlie Bradshaw Mystery (Paperback)
We see the world through the eyes of Vic Plotz, a fifty-something, wisecracking P.I. with an appreciation for older women. Vic and his boss Charlie get caught up in the intrigue of a series of murders at Battlefield Farms near Saratoga. Vic tracks down clues and plots his own intrigues against a Harley-riding tenant and his granddaughter who's threatening to ruin his life with a visit. The list of suspects gets shorter and shorter, as they get killed off one by one, and Charlie and Vic wrap it up just in time to save the last victim. Though the mystery wasn't top drawer, the book was written in an engaging, amusing style. Vic's observations and machinations make the whole thing worthwhile as they easily upstage the main story. I'd pick up another Dobyns novel if I found one.
2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not up to par,
By A Customer
This review is from: Saratoga Backtalk (A Charlie Bradshaw Mystery) (Hardcover)
I am currently reading this book and am not finding it nearly as entertaining as Mr. Dobyns' previous Charlie Bradshaw mysteries. This, I believe, is because the roles of Charlie and Victor ("Vic, call me Vic") have been reversed. Somehow, having Victor the main character and Charlie in the background doesn't work as well, at least for me.
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