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Paradise Palms: Red Menace Mob Kindle Edition
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It is October 1957. A time of Eisenhower conformity, police and mob strongholds, and Red Scare paranoia. A relic of Hollywood's Golden Age, the aging Paradise Palms Hotel is on the brink of change. David Shapiro-eldest son of recently widowed Max Shapiro-has assumed a leadership role. But the more he digs into the hotel's business, the more he questions who his father is. It's not just the tenuous ties to gangster Mickey Cohen, who is trying to commandeer "the Palms," but also the sudden appearance of a mysterious African American guest named Rae Lynn, who improbably rises in stature. As long-buried secrets come to light, David's battle to keep the family intact takes a tragic turn. His actions mirror an America lurching from the surface simplicity of the '50s to the turmoil of the 1960s in this riveting neo-noir family saga.
- LanguageEnglish
- Publication dateJuly 8, 2021
- File size1155 KB
Editorial Reviews
Review
"Quirky brothers battle a mobster over the future of their family's hotel in 1950s Los Angeles in Haddad's novel... The writing is vividly descriptive, snarky, and funny, but it doesn't shy away from engaging with serious issues, such as homophobia, racism, and police corruption. Haddad's background as an Emmy-nominated TV writer and producer is obvious, as is his deep affection for the city of Los Angeles and its history." - Kirkus Reviews
"A finely-detailed story that recalls the period aesthetics of MadMen and mixes it up with a noirish vibe. The read goes down smooth as champagne and leaves the readerwanting more." - Slamdance.com
"Paradise Palms is an engaging, gripping tale of a time when Hollywood, and the world, were rapidly changing. I almost think Paul Haddad has a time machine hidden away somewhere, but no matter, you can travel back in time through these delightful pages... I really, really, really enjoyed this book." - Jake Gerhardt, Author, "My Future Ex-Girlfriend"
"The story hums, the historic setting shines, and the colorful cast of characters keeps the pages turning." - S.W. Lauden, Author, Greg Salem punk rock PI series
"The Coen Bros. meet James Ellroy." - Donald H. Hewitt, Screenwriter, Oscar-winning "Spirited Away"
About the Author
Product details
- ASIN : B0933CD2X1
- Publisher : Black Rose Writing (July 8, 2021)
- Publication date : July 8, 2021
- Language : English
- File size : 1155 KB
- Text-to-Speech : Enabled
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Not Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Sticky notes : On Kindle Scribe
- Print length : 299 pages
- Best Sellers Rank: #2,189,673 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #3,716 in Organized Crime (Kindle Store)
- #3,870 in Noir Crime
- #7,055 in Organized Crime Thrillers
- Customer Reviews:
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About the author

Paul Haddad is a Los Angeles Times Best-Selling Author who writes nonfiction and fiction, often set in his native Los Angeles. His most recent book is "Freewaytopia: How Freeways Shaped Los Angeles," which charts the rise of freeways and their influence on the communities and landscape of L.A. Other books include the perennially popular "10,000 Steps a Day in L.A.: 57 Walking Adventures," the second edition of the original book, which covers 52 Walking Adventures. Both take readers to hidden and iconic SoCal landmarks; "Paradise Palms: Red Menace Mob," a crime noir novel in which a family tries to stave off the mob from commandeering their hotel in 1950s Hollywood; "Aramid," which follows the travails of a humanistic girl robot corrupted by the high school students who created her; "Skinny White Freak," an illustrated YA novel set in 1970s Malibu about confronting a camp bully; and "High Fives, Pennant Drives, and Fernandomania: A Fan's History of the Los Angeles Dodgers' Glory Years, 1977-1981," a look back at the team's championship core through the radio calls of announcer Vin Scully. Haddad earned an MFA degree from USC film school, where he won a Student Emmy for his documentary work. He works in television as a writer, director, and executive producer.
PaulHaddadBooks.com
heypaulhaddad@gmail.com
Twitter: @la_dorkout
www.facebook.com/paulhaddadbooks
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The story takes place in Los Angeles in the 1950s and centers around the Shapiro family who own a hotel that is slowly sinking into decay. Max, the patriarch of the family, has shacked up with a woman several decades younger who insinuates herself more and more into the family business, helping to drive the decline. Her gangster boyfriend on the side also has seedy plans to use the hotel for his own criminal activity. Max's sons are doing their best to keep the family business afloat, but there are few tenants and the gangster has his hooks set deep.
I enjoyed this book more than I expected! It was a little hard keeping track of the characters at the beginning, but they all have their own voices and I was soon sucked into the plot. I had to find out what was going to happen to the Shapiro family and their hotel!
The characters are well-written and Haddad handles racial and LGBTQ issues with sensitivity. I love the Hollywood/LA setting and Haddad describes how the area used to be back in the day.
I was a little concerned that, being a crime noir book, the violence would be over the top, but it isn't. There is violence and murder, but it never gets explicit.
Thanks to the author & team at Book Publicity Services for giving away a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
I am a sucker for anything about old Hollywood. Even if it's about a old decaying hotel on the outskirts of what was once a main hub for the rich a famous. This book has so many amazing elements that instantly drew me in:
1950s Los Angeles during the Red Scare.
Mob ties and police corruption.
Funerals, Births and weddings. (all the best drama filled family functions!)
Extortion, Arson, and Murder.
Family saga & Family secrets.
I mean, how is this book not talked about more!? I really enjoyed the way Haddad gives such rough characters such beautiful writing, you sometimes find yourself rooting for the bad guy simply because you are immersed in the words. This is a book I will definitely reread and will highly recommend to anyone who enjoys historical fiction and crime books.
I also feel like Haddad's writing would translate beautifully to the screen. As I was reading this I just kept picturing this as movie or mini series.
Max Shapiro is the family patriarch, a rough-and-tumble sort who grew up in rough-and-tumble Chicago on the border between legality and gangsters. His four grown sons are Aaron, married with three children; fraternal twins David and Leo, both unmarried; and Rudy, the baby of the family who has never quite seemed able to grow up. David is the family caretaker and de facto leader; hotel staff bring problems to David, not Max.
The story opens at the funeral of Marta, Max’s wife and mother of his four children. That Max had brought his girlfriend explains a lot about Max. That the girlfriend is named Kitty Kay explains a lot about her. Max and Kitty live at the hotel, as do David and Leo.
A new family wrinkle is added with the appearance of Rae, an attractive black woman who happens to be Max’s daughter from a liaison with a maid. To Max’s credit, he accepts her; he’s provided for her since her birth. The sons are thrown, and initially only Leo accepts his half-sister.
What the four sons and Rae begin to find is that Max and Kitty are entangled with the mob, and the mob is closing its fists around the Paradise Palms. It wants that property for what it’s worth is the high-flying real estate market of Los Angeles in the late 1950s. And the question they, and especially David, face is to what lengths they’re prepared to go to protect their father, the hotel, and the family.
“Paradise Palms” by Paul Haddad is the story of the Shapiro family and the hotel, the incursions being attempted by the mob (including a historical figure or two), and how the personal lives of the sons begin to enter into the entire family and hotel dynamic. It’s a fascinating story told well. (It is also a story that includes rough language and a number of scenes of violence.)
Haddad, a native of Hollywood and Los Angeles, has had an extensive career in television and film. He first published book was nonfiction, “High Fives, Pennant Drives, and Fernandomania: A Fan’s History of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Glory Years, 1977-1981” (2012). He’s also published the novels “Skinny White Freak” and “Aramid,” and the nonfiction book “10,000 Steps A Day in L.A.: 52 Walking Adventures.” He lives in Los Angeles.
“Paradise Palms” takes the reader in unexpected direction but always remains faithful to the core story of a family and the lengths it’s prepared to go to protect itself.