The Man Who Shot Lewis Vance (Toby Peters Mystery) [Hardcover]

Stuart M. Kaminsky (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The setting is Hollywood in 1942, and someone is out to kill John Wayne, in this 11th adventure featuring private gumshoe Toby Peters (Down for the Count. A man named Lewis Vance lures Toby to his hotel room, ostensibly to hire him for a case. But Toby, after awakening from a stupor induced by a drugged Pepsi, finds himself in the room with Vance's corpse on the bed and John Wayne pointing a .38 at his chest. Wayne has also been lured there by a cryptic phone call and is suspicious of the P.I., but when he learns that Toby is a chum from his old neighborhood, the actor hires him to find the real culprit. The case gets more tangled when Toby discovers a link between Vance's alleged killera shady desk clerk named Teddy Spaghettiand the theft of a $10,000 donation (made by Charlie Chaplin) to a charity promoting Soviet-American relations; he soon find himself in Chaplin's hire to recover the stolen money. As in the other entries in this series, Kaminsky's use of period detail and his appealing renderings of real-life celebrities provide the strongest recommendations for this well-plotted mystery.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 194 pages
• Publisher: St Martins Pr (January 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312513941
• ISBN-13: 978-0312513948
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.7 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #794,351 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Libro Bravo!, March 4, 2002

By 

Doghouse King "eddie_denman" (Omaha, NE United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Man Who Shot Lewis Vance (Toby Peters Mystery) (Hardcover)

The Man Who Shot Lewis Vance is a fun book. But it is not among the very best in the Toby Peters series. This is due in large part to the fact that the Duke was barely in it. I know this series is not really *about* Hollywood stars of the 40's; it's about slovenly PI Toby Peters and his comical cast of misfits. But usually the stars are not just window dressing, either. This time, the Duke had naught but a glorified cameo. If it were a film, he would fire his agent. In fact, Charlie Chaplin had a much meatier role than John Wayne.

That said, the portrayal of Duke was respectful. Far more respectful than it could have been, given his larger-than-life image and the subtly politicized subject matter.

The mystery itself is pretty good until the solution, which seemed implausible, though the motive was somewhat thought-provoking, even touching. I had better say no more than that, except to add that once the culprit was revealed, the machinations seemed a little protracted and the book a tad padded, even at its short length. And we learn Peters had figured it out a bit earlier; he may have endangered lives by not acting when he first suspected.

Plus, there is a sex scene inserted into the mix. Toby Peters mysteries always have one. They are never exploitative, but often seem out of place. Especially this one, with a "lady" calling herself Olivia Fontaine. Ugh.

Still, it is a light, entertaining read, with nice payoffs for long-time fans. Phil acting ... nice. Jeremy's wedding. Mrs. Plaut considering a hearing aid. Toby telling Shel off. Toby trying RC Cola. And a new car for our hero.

Bravo to Kaminsky for his series, which hearken back to the days of Raymond Chandler. They're not really similar, but Kaminsky's love for Marlowe, the era and the style are very evident. I would just recommend a couple others ahead of this one, that's all.

Try also: Think Fast, Mr. Peters (3.5 stars); Never Cross a Vampire (4.0-4.5 stars, because it has something meaningful to say about Lugosi's career and how it parallels the mystery. Read it, it's a nice touch.)