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Antonio "Chico" Cervantes #4
The Sidewalk Hilton
Hired to find a visiting Chicago millionaire missing in Los Angeles, private investigator Chico Cervantes embarks on a real Phoenix of a case; each time the Latino detective thinks he's finished it off, it rises again to confound him.
It isn't long before he finds Benjamin Sterling's murdered body in the tycoon's room in a posh hotel. But the man's face wounds make identification difficult, and Sterling's daughter insists - and proves - that it is not her father, although it was obviously intended to be taken as him.
Benjamin Sterling soon turns up alive and well. He's been living in a city park with a congregation of homeless men. The millionaire wants to fund a project to relieve homelessness; to get it off the ground, he wanted first-hand experience of the lifestyle.
Although no one knows who killed the stand-in, who turns out to be one of the city's homeless, Sterling plucks an associate from among the men. Julio Alviero is a genial Mexican-American small-time con man whom Sterling takes back to Chicago with him as a "consultant." For who is more able to advise on what will work and what won't than someone straight from the streets? Except that when the real Benjamin Sterling is found dead, his "consultant" is arrested and Chico is once again on the move, this time to Chicago to extricate his friend from the toils of the law and uncover a very persistent killer.
It isn't long before he finds Benjamin Sterling's murdered body in the tycoon's room in a posh hotel. But the man's face wounds make identification difficult, and Sterling's daughter insists - and proves - that it is not her father, although it was obviously intended to be taken as him.
Benjamin Sterling soon turns up alive and well. He's been living in a city park with a congregation of homeless men. The millionaire wants to fund a project to relieve homelessness; to get it off the ground, he wanted first-hand experience of the lifestyle.
Although no one knows who killed the stand-in, who turns out to be one of the city's homeless, Sterling plucks an associate from among the men. Julio Alviero is a genial Mexican-American small-time con man whom Sterling takes back to Chicago with him as a "consultant." For who is more able to advise on what will work and what won't than someone straight from the streets? Except that when the real Benjamin Sterling is found dead, his "consultant" is arrested and Chico is once again on the move, this time to Chicago to extricate his friend from the toils of the law and uncover a very persistent killer.
Hardcover
Published January 1, 1994
About the author
Bruce Cook
29 books33 followersBruce Alexander Cook was an American journalist and author who also wrote under the pseudonym Bruce Alexander. He wrote historical fiction and nonfiction.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Cook's first book was a nonfiction work, The Beat Generation, published in 1971. His first novel was Chicago-based Sex Life, in 1978.
He wrote four novels featuring Los Angeles detective Antonio "Chico" Cervantes under the name Bruce Cook and also a series of novels about the blind magistrate Sir John Fielding, the real-life founder of London's first police force, under the name Bruce Alexander, the last of which was published posthumously by his widow and writer John Shannon. Young Will: The Confessions of William Shakespeare was also published posthumously.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Cook's first book was a nonfiction work, The Beat Generation, published in 1971. His first novel was Chicago-based Sex Life, in 1978.
He wrote four novels featuring Los Angeles detective Antonio "Chico" Cervantes under the name Bruce Cook and also a series of novels about the blind magistrate Sir John Fielding, the real-life founder of London's first police force, under the name Bruce Alexander, the last of which was published posthumously by his widow and writer John Shannon. Young Will: The Confessions of William Shakespeare was also published posthumously.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
July 5, 2016
I loved this book. I love this author.
This book is a mystery featuring a private investigator named Antonio Cervantes who lives in the Los Angeles area. To me, the greatest strength of the book is the personality of the main character, but there's plenty more - lots of other intriguing characters that you care about or are afraid of, lots of action, lots of problems to try to solve, lots of danger, lots of new situations or places.
If you like this book, there are three more in this series. This book, The Sidewalk Hilton, happens to be the fourth in the series.
This book is a mystery featuring a private investigator named Antonio Cervantes who lives in the Los Angeles area. To me, the greatest strength of the book is the personality of the main character, but there's plenty more - lots of other intriguing characters that you care about or are afraid of, lots of action, lots of problems to try to solve, lots of danger, lots of new situations or places.
If you like this book, there are three more in this series. This book, The Sidewalk Hilton, happens to be the fourth in the series.
Displaying 1 of 1 review