A Tight Lie [Hardcover]

Don Dahler (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 17, 2009

Huck Doyle is a professional golfer, a PGA “middler” who just manages to hold onto his tour card as he plays the small tournaments on the circuit. He also happens to be the son of a disgraced LAPD cop, a law school grad without a license to practice, and a registered private investigator. When Joniel Baker, a high profile baseball player, claims that he’s been wrongly accused of murder, he asks his friend Doyle to get involved, to fly under the radar and find out things that the police can’t—or won’t.

Though everything about Joniel and his whereabouts on the night of the murder points to his guilt, Huck decides to take on the case, “because he finds murder investigations a nice distraction from the violent and depressing world of the PGA.”

With the speed of Tiger Wood’s swing, Don Dahler has joined the ranks of Tim Green and Mike Lupica in writing riveting mysteries with a dash of sports. Perfect for thriller readers and golf fans, A Tight Lie

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Golf fans will probably best appreciate Dahler's debut, narrated by pro golfer Huck Doyle, a nonpracticing attorney who works as a PI in Los Angeles. When someone bludgeons aspiring actress Holly Ann Cramer with a cappuccino machine, then stabs her in the heart six times, Holly's boyfriend, Joniel Baker, a star African-American baseball player, becomes the prime suspect. Huck, a friend of Joniel's, undertakes to exonerate the accused, even after a second body surfaces that bears traces of the athlete's DNA. Huck enlists the help of a motley group of allies, ranging from an attractive female medical examiner to his father, a former LAPD cop. Some infelicitous prose (His voice was low, like a shift in the tectonic plates) and a familiar planted-evidence plot device ensure that no one will mistake this caper for a Dick Francis outing. Still, many will enjoy the company of the garrulous Huck with his passion for golf and eye for the telling social or cultural detail. (Mar.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

Praise for A Tight Lie:

"It's an exciting read! An absolute thriller! Once I started reading it, I could not and did not put it down!" --Bill Evans, author of Category 7

"A terrific hardboiled LA story - with a bonus peek into the world of pro sports." --Lee Child, the New York Times bestselling author of Nothing to Lose

“I hate golf. In fact, it puts me to sleep. But A Tight Lie isn’t some mystery about golf. It’s a sharp, funny, well-crafted thriller about a private investigator who just happens to make pretty good with the sticks. In LA talk: Think Chinatown meets Tin Cup. Dahler had me hooked with his in depth meditations on sports psychology, Pamela Anderson’s breasts, and fine Scotch. Pour yourself a single malt, kick back, and enjoy this notable debut.” --Ace Atkins, author of White Shadow and Wicked City

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; First Edition edition (March 17, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312383509
• ISBN-13: 978-0312383503
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,280,975 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Don Dahler was born in Colorado Springs, Colorado. As the child of an Air Force officer, Don grew up in numerous locations, from Oregon to Louisiana; West Virginia to Ohio. He began writing short stories at an early age and completed his first novel at 17.

Eventually, his love of travel, writing and adventure led him to a career in journalism. Don started working in local television news in San Antonio and later in North Carolina, before he veered into the world of documentary production. His film work began appearing on The Discovery Channel, PBS, and National Geographic. All the while, Don continued to hone his skills with the literary narrative. During this period, Don journeyed to over 120 countries, often living in places like Africa and Asia for months at a time.

Don's first foray into network news happened when he joined CBS-News as a producer for 48Hours. That led to correspondent positions with Fox News and CNBC before ABC-News' Good Morning America made him their National Correspondent. His reporting from the scene of the attacks on 9/11 helped win him and ABC-News the most important broadcasting awards. Don traveled to Afghanistan to cover the beginning of the war there, and was an embedded war correspondent in Iraq, returning four times. He went on to report for Nightline and World News Tonight before leaving ABC-News to join WCBS-TV in New York City as their 6pm anchor.

Don is married and has two children. He credits his wife, Katie, with getting him interested in golf, which became the setting for his first and second published mystery novels, A Tight Lie and Water Hazard.

For more information, please visit Don's website, http://www.dondahler.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars fine sports mystery, March 20, 2009

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Tight Lie (Hardcover)

Someone hammers Hollywood actress Holly Ann Cramer with a cappuccino machine, rapes her and murders her with six vicious stabs to her heart. Because the homicide is excessively violent implying a crime of passion, LAPD suspects the victim's boyfriend, all star baseball player Joniel Baker, who was ending their relationship but swears he did not kill her.

Joniel asks his friend private investigator Huck Doyle to investigate the murder as the prime suspect does not trust the police to look beyond him. Huck, who has a law degree that he does not use and is a licensed private investigator who has license that he does use when he is not sinking the putt on the PGA tour, which is frequently, reluctantly agrees. Complicating the case is a second victim also containing DNA that implicated Joniel. With the help of his disgraced father and his paraplegic brother, Huck begins to believe Joniel's claim he is being set up

The Doyle family makes this a fine sports mystery as the Huckster narrates the whodunit with a string of enthusiastic birdies about golf, murder and the collapse of society. His two relatives are total opposites when it comes to investigations; dad the ex LAPD cop says the end is all that matters while the brother the ex FBI agent insists the means is just as important. Although the inquiry is conveniently helped, sub-genre fans especially golfers will enjoy Don Dahler's delightful debut as Huck beats par for the course.

Harriet Klausner

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lost Symbol for golfers plus a good story, November 1, 2009

By 

Edward Mendlowitz (East Brunswick, NJ) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Tight Lie (Hardcover)

Don is a familiar face if you watch any type of news. What is not so evident is his sense of tongue in cheek humor which shows through in A Tight Lie. This is a murder mystery that is a quasi golf survey course - much like Dan Brown's Lost Symbol is to the Masons - only this is more interesting and just as thorough with much less pages.

Don's golf tips and PGA tour background is elucidating and informative with insights that should bring more interest to those who follow pro golf. The tips are not so bad - particularly his hardest shot - which I practiced the day before I wrote this review and was able to actually reduce my score by a couple of strokes. You have to read the book to find out what it is. I'm not telling.

The descriptions of the bad characters are that they are unredeemably bad people but the vigilante nature of the chase was upsetting, left me no gratification, and doesn't have me convinced it was not justice. But it is a story and as a story it fit in, and was somewhat realistic.

The characters are carefully drawn and relatable to - all of them - and leave you with feelings for them. I am looking forward to the next Huck Doyle mystery.

P.S. I ordered a dozen copies to give to some of my golfing buddies.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Grip it & rip it...or, rather, read it!, April 11, 2009

By 

Michael J. Balkind "Author of Sudden Death & ... (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Tight Lie (Hardcover)

Golf, guns, booze, and scantily dressed women will keep you rapidly turning the pages of this exciting novel. Whether he's trying to shave a few strokes off his golf game in order to keep his PGA tour card or he's being chased by Wiseguys while trying to prove the innocence of his pro baseball player, friend, Joniel Baker, PGA Tour Pro and Private Investigator, Huck Doyle is an enjoyable character. His actions and thoughts range from rough around the edges to witty and refined. Will he solve the crime, get the girl, and keep his tour card? Of course I can't tell you that, but I can tell you to hold on and enjoy the ride as you bounce from a wild, four-wheeling chase up a winding mountain trail to the pristine fairways and greens of Bel-Air country club. From the sophisticated company of the elite PGA tour to the bawdy, drunken ambiance of an L.A strip club. Whether he's firing from the 18th tee at Pebble Beach or from his Sig Sauer, I look forward to the next tale of Huck Doyle.
Don Dahler has scored an Ace in this excellent debut novel.

Michael Balkind