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Steal the Show: A Willis Gidney Mystery (Willis Gidney Mysteries) Hardcover – July 5, 2011

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Thomas Kaufman (Author)
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Thomas Kaufman (Author)
4.6 out of 5 stars 16 customer reviews
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Product Details

  • Series: Willis Gidney Mysteries (Book 2)
  • Hardcover: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Minotaur Books; First Edition edition (July 5, 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0312546327
  • ISBN-13: 978-0312546328
  • Product Dimensions: 5.8 x 1.1 x 8.4 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,007,957 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars"This was the first time I'd ever had a client blackmail me."
By Luan Gaines HALL OF FAMEVINE VOICE on July 5, 2011
Format: Hardcover
Willis Gidney could be one of those wise-cracking Washington, DC, PIs who live on the fringes, maintain a reasonable relationship with the cops, skirt the edge of the law and justify a marginal life with the questionable accoutrements of dilapidated car, shabby office, meager bank account and a wardrobe of used clothing. But he isn't, because Kaufman personalizes his protagonist, a graduate of the labyrinthine bureaucracy of DC's Child Welfare system who is desperately jumping through the necessary hoops to adopt a two-year-old orphan he saved from a life-threatening situation. That the child is black and Gidney is not might prove an obstacle, not to mention his history in the system, but Willis is determined to give "Sarah" a home. When a stubborn case worker does everything in her power to thwart the adoption, Gidney hires an attorney and appeals the denial, unwilling to relinquish the child that has captured his heart and his hope.

This is where the story gets interesting: appeals cost money. Without jeopardizing his standing in the eyes of the court, the desperate PI accepts a job from a questionable character whose father heads a group lobbying to prevent movie piracy, a simple enough assignment, but one filled with landmines from shady Rush Gemelli with a fist full of cash to a colorful cast of bad actors and miscreants, from the sour case worker to tattooed gang-bangers, potentially lucrative new encryption technology to behind-the-scenes-money men, enforcers, friends and enemies from the past, an outspoken girlfriend sporting two-tone dreads, a lesbian ex-fiancé- and a murder, with Willis as the fall guy. Gidney is caught in the middle of this sideshow, his efforts to make money landing him in the thick of trouble.Read more ›
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5.0 out of 5 starsterrific private investigative tale
By Harriet Klausner #1 HALL OF FAME on July 10, 2011
Format: Hardcover
Rush Gemelli asks D.C private investigator Willis Gidney to break into a warehouse in Alexandria. Gidney refuses, but changes his mind as business has been poor lately and he needs money to adopt the two-year-old abandoned girl Sarah he rescued from a fire. Gemelli believes Gidney will find film piracy inside the warehouse.

Just as he was told, Gidney finds an operation burning DVDs. Two Asian gunmen see him, but Gidney escapes. Gemelli blackmails the sleuth to assist his father Chuck, a former White House aide who is the Motion Picture Alliance Council chief lobbyist. Already feeling like a sucker, things turn worse for Gidney when Chuck's former partner is murdered with him as the fall guy while gangs want him dead.

This terrific private investigative tale uses Sarah to lighten Gidney's edge yet also makes the case that a hard-boiled single sleuth is not quite what social worker Walters has in mind for the toddler. Fans will enjoy Gidney's efforts to extract himself from the mess he has nose dived into (with talc all over him) as Thomas Kaufman provides an engaging DC noir (see Drink the Tea).

Harriet Klausner
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5.0 out of 5 starsA private investigator gets in way too deep
By Stephen Menick on September 21, 2011
Format: Hardcover
He was abandoned as a child and grew up in foster care. And he's handed a chance--maybe--to save a little kid who's about to go tumbling into the same hole. "Who would want a child seen as damaged, simply by being born in the wrong place? Me, that's who."

He tries to do it straight. Goes to Adoptive Services. They turn him down. He needs a lawyer. But lawyers cost money, and all the heart in the world won't get you one. So he commits a crime. Why not? It pays. And crime is something he knows backwards and forwards. Use the skills the good Lord gave you.

STEAL THE SHOW features a P.I. but it isn't a P.I. novel. It's not about a guy trying to solve a crime, it's about a guy going bad so he can do good. What makes a criminal? Sometimes, just a simple moral imperative.

This is a look into the dark heart of a big city through the lens of one man who knows how dark it is. There's a flavor of Chandler in the wit, but what we're seeing with this novel and its predecessor, DRINK THE TEA, is an emerging universe, and in the middle of it, a guy with a past and a strong motivation. To him, it's not just a job. It's a gamble to save his soul.
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5.0 out of 5 starsAnother winner
By tao man on August 2, 2011
Format: Hardcover
Kaufman has created an engaging sleuth and crafted a fine mystery in his second Willis Gidney mystery. The D.C. setting is integral to the story and feels authentic. I highly recommend this book to fans of George Pelecanos, Robert Parker, and Donald Westlake.
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1.0 out of 5 starsway too many loose ends
By Martha E Tellez on July 30, 2013
Format: Kindle Edition Verified Purchase
It is very weak, slow and disjointed story. Characters and circumstances even for fiction were far fetched. Very poor ending.
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5.0 out of 5 starsAnother great Willis Gidney thrill-ride
By B. Hauser on December 24, 2011
Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase
Remember when Jack Valenti announced that the MPAA had come up with an anti-piracy code for DVDs that "nobody will be able to crack for 1000 years?" And then the next day some teenager in Sweden posted the key on the internet? (That's how I remember it anyway.) That's the background for this lively private-eye mystery, with PI Willis Gidney again in over his head (like the first book, Drink the Tea), careening around DC before the wheels fall off his wagon. You can almost hear the circus music as Gidney deals with a girlfriend crisis, a toddler he wants to adopt despite the hostility of a welfare worker, a couple of flaky movie-stars, an Asian gang, a Latino gang--both out to kill him--a client who's disappeared, and dead bodies to step over along the way. Remember the plate-spinner on Ed Sullivan? That's Gidney. You don't have to have read Drink the Tea to enjoy this one--it stands on its own--but treat yourself to both; the extensive back story of the first novel definitely thickens the sauce when you read Steal the Show. Both well worth the read.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 starsI enjoyed this case and want to read more about him

Willis Gidney's second outing brings him close to a special girl. Not the grown-up kind; this is an abandoned baby girl. Read more

Published 3 months ago by Louis Burklow
5.0 out of 5 starsA great read!

Tom Kaufman has continued his winning streak with his second Willis Gidney mystery. Compelling story, interesting characters, and great humor. Let's have some more Gidney!

Published on March 29, 2014 by Barbara York
5.0 out of 5 starsA fast paced mystery

I loved the book! I took it on vacation and didn't leave the living room until I had finished the book. The story takes twists and turns that I wasn't expecting. Read more

Published on September 11, 2011 by sfb
5.0 out of 5 starsSnappy comebacks - even in a city riddled with snark and sarcasm

I'm still not sure about the age of PI Willis Gidney, but in his latest episode, Gidney has better lines and more comebacks than Jay Leno. Read more

Published on September 3, 2011 by Reavers
5.0 out of 5 starsIn Order to Adopt a Baby, Willis Gidney Must Destroy a Film Pirating...

PI Willis Gidney is forced to hire an expensive lawyer in order to adopt Sarah, a baby whose life he saved. Read more

Published on September 2, 2011 by J. B. Hoyos
5.0 out of 5 starsA Capitol Classic

Tighten your seatbelt for a great ride. This is a tour of the "other side" of our nation's capitol. Willis Gidney should be ready to take on the DC juvenile justice system, after... Read more

Published on August 30, 2011 by JetCity
5.0 out of 5 starsA wild ride

A great read and a wild ride through our nation's capital - You see the many different sides of the city and get behind some doors you might have wondered about.

Published on August 29, 2011 by Natasha Reatig
5.0 out of 5 starsFunny and engaging mystery

I'm not normally a mystery reader, but I love the Willis Gidney books. I recently picked up Steal the Show and thought it was a great read. Read more

Published on August 18, 2011 by mrs65
5.0 out of 5 starsAnother Great DC Story (and not about Congress!)

It's about time that there is a great story from Washington, and needless to say it isn't from your elected representatives. Read more

Published on August 17, 2011 by James Hagy
5.0 out of 5 starsWillis Gidney steals your heart in "Steal the Show"

Willis Gidney's desire to adopt a little girl who he found when her mother had been murdered drives our stalwart detective deeper into the DC bureaucracy he once escaped from in... Read more

Published on August 17, 2011 by dellcat

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