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Cal Claxton #2
Dead Float: A Cal Claxton Mystery (Cal Claxton Mysteries)
Murder disrupts a high-stakes fishing trip on Oregon's legendary river. Ex-prosecutor Cal Claxton, caught between a past fling and a missing weapon, must reel in the killer before he becomes the catch. Can he clear his name and expose the truth before the current runs dry?
Unknown Binding
First published January 1, 2014
17 people are currently reading
240 people want to read
About the author
Warren C. Easley
11 books40 followersFormerly a research scientist and international business executive, Easley lives in Oregon where he writes fiction, hikes, skis, and fly fishes. As the author of the Cal Claxton Mysteries, he received a Kay Snow national award for fiction and was named the Northwest's Up and Coming Author by Willamette Writers. His fifth book in the series, Blood for Wine, was short-listed for the coveted Nero Wolfe Award and his eighth book, No Witness, won the Spotted Owl Award for the best mystery written by an author living in the greater Northwest, including Canada.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
August 28, 2018
This is the one about the ex-DA who goes to the country (Oregon) and finds life just as complicated as it was in LA, with murders, hit men, psycho-cops, and internet startups. Nothing wrong with this one, but you’ve seen it on tv before. Resoundingly average in plot, characterization, and setting, but not boring even given all that.
July 30, 2025
Fast paced murder mystery. It is set in Oregon Willamette Valley.
June 2, 2015
Warren C. Easley is a writer who will give you an exciting read without putting you through a lot of mental gymnastics. He tells his story in uncomplicated language at a pace you can handle. “Dead Float, ” his 2014 novel, is the second about Cal Claxton, an everyday kind of guy who gets tangled up in messes he isn’t looking for, doesn’t want, then handles adroitly just because he has to.
This story is about a fishing trip, the murder of one of the participants, a rush to judgment, and Claxton’s efforts to get from under the suspicion directed at him. There are bad guys, good friends, beautiful women, and loyal pets woven together in a pleasantly spun narrative that eschews gory details and salacious sex. There are great descriptions of the loveliness of Oregon, fishing scenes that make the homebound angler thirst for the river, and realistic dialogue that keeps the reader involved. What Easley also provides is a well thought out sequence of events that are vividly described and engrossing. And apparently the writer is a food fan; there are many references to victuals and the eating thereof.
This book has just the right number of characters to provide interest, but not so many that the twists get knotted and snarled. Other that the bad hombres, no one is really disagreeable. My guess is that Easley has good, solid friends that he can use to sharpen his images. I liked the book and can recommend it for a great summer read, especially along one of Oregon’s streams while waiting for the hatch to rise.
July 10, 2014
Workmanlike thriller with a lot of clever detail, but Claxton, an ex-LA prosecutor does some silly things. You would expect better from a hot-shot big city DA.
December 31, 2021
This is a great mystery by a great local author. I highly recommend it.
October 12, 2016
easy light reading. written by Marge's husband Warren. fun
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 19, 2020
SPOILER ALERT
Another fascinating story from Easley. Cal Claxton has two major issues in his life at this point. Claire, his daughter, has chosen to go to Darfur with a Well Spring team to dig wells, a country that is seeing significant conflict. And, indeed, she and the team run into problems, being taken hostage by Janjaweed and then an Arab militia. She breaks her leg and is nearly raped, when a man named Mustafa comes to her aid. She does return safely.
As she is dealing with her situation, Cal finds himself in cold water as he agrees to assist his friend, Philip Lone Deer, guiding a fishing trip on the Deschutes River in Eastern Oregon. A small group of management executives from NanoTech are going to have a retreat with Daina Zakaris, a management consultant, to work out their problems, stemming mainly from rapid success and the disagreement over whether to go public. The CEO Hal Bruckner, who does not want to go public, is murdered on the first night, and someone who knew of Cal's participation from the first, decides to frame him. Both Cal and Philip believe that someone came through on a train that passes the Kasela exchange in the night and committed the murder. There is evidence to substantiate that theory. It had to be planned by someone from the group including Hal's wife Alexis (with whom Cal had had a brief affair after the last fishing trip), Mitch Hannon, Ha's nephew, Duane Pitman, who has created the new computer program that will increase the speed as well as the other capabilities of computers, or Andrew Streeter, a colleague of Hannon's who was slated to be fired by Hal. Pitman feels that he is not appreciated by the others, which is true, and he is in contact with two competing companies who want his invention. It a missing security agreement he made with Hal is not found he will take his invention with him. The detectives from Madras who come to the site to investigate are ruthless and not very bright. Det Vincent Escalante listens briefly to the theories put out by Cal and Philip but his partner William Dorn takes an instant dislike to Cal and wants to pin the murder on him. Cal's knife and parka are missing. His knife is found on a sand bar in the river across from where Hal's murder by his throat being cut. During the investigation Cal finds himself the brunt of Dorn's malice and physical abuse. Dorn who is known for his brutality is finally let go and prosecuted for other police excessive force.
Cal realizes he is going to have to find the murder by himself. He enlists the help of Philip, Nando Mendoza, Daina and others. He determines there was a man who an Indian boy Oliver Dan saw leaving a pickup near the tracks. Additionally, there was a carjacking shortly after the murder in which he believes the murderer killed the owner to use his car as a getaway, since the boys had stolen the pickup. He finds out that there is an assassin, El Cuchillo (the Blade), Timothy Atwater, who works for the cartel the Zetas, and eventually he determines that Streeter could have found El Cuchillo through his drug contact, Reynaldo, a major drug supplier in PDX. Cal finds another murder victim, CJ Manion, a girlfriend of the killer who knows too much, and is nearly picked up for that as he was seen there shortly after the body is discovered.
El Cuchillo comes after Cal and when killing him as he fishes with Philip is unsuccessful, he kidnaps Claire to get Cal to come to him. Cal and Daina had found the cabin where he was before he expected and he goes planning to save her, only to be discovered and ends up digging three graves. Philip and Diana comes to the rescue at the last minute. Archie survives a severe beating. In the process of the case Cal discovers that Daina is from Russia. When there is an explosion in the apartment next to hers she finds the documents for her friend who dies, and takes them to assume a new identity and life, so she does not have to return to Russia. Cal keeps her secret and begins a relationship with her when she returns to Seattle. This was a suspenseful and fast moving book, and thoroughly entertaining.
Another fascinating story from Easley. Cal Claxton has two major issues in his life at this point. Claire, his daughter, has chosen to go to Darfur with a Well Spring team to dig wells, a country that is seeing significant conflict. And, indeed, she and the team run into problems, being taken hostage by Janjaweed and then an Arab militia. She breaks her leg and is nearly raped, when a man named Mustafa comes to her aid. She does return safely.
As she is dealing with her situation, Cal finds himself in cold water as he agrees to assist his friend, Philip Lone Deer, guiding a fishing trip on the Deschutes River in Eastern Oregon. A small group of management executives from NanoTech are going to have a retreat with Daina Zakaris, a management consultant, to work out their problems, stemming mainly from rapid success and the disagreement over whether to go public. The CEO Hal Bruckner, who does not want to go public, is murdered on the first night, and someone who knew of Cal's participation from the first, decides to frame him. Both Cal and Philip believe that someone came through on a train that passes the Kasela exchange in the night and committed the murder. There is evidence to substantiate that theory. It had to be planned by someone from the group including Hal's wife Alexis (with whom Cal had had a brief affair after the last fishing trip), Mitch Hannon, Ha's nephew, Duane Pitman, who has created the new computer program that will increase the speed as well as the other capabilities of computers, or Andrew Streeter, a colleague of Hannon's who was slated to be fired by Hal. Pitman feels that he is not appreciated by the others, which is true, and he is in contact with two competing companies who want his invention. It a missing security agreement he made with Hal is not found he will take his invention with him. The detectives from Madras who come to the site to investigate are ruthless and not very bright. Det Vincent Escalante listens briefly to the theories put out by Cal and Philip but his partner William Dorn takes an instant dislike to Cal and wants to pin the murder on him. Cal's knife and parka are missing. His knife is found on a sand bar in the river across from where Hal's murder by his throat being cut. During the investigation Cal finds himself the brunt of Dorn's malice and physical abuse. Dorn who is known for his brutality is finally let go and prosecuted for other police excessive force.
Cal realizes he is going to have to find the murder by himself. He enlists the help of Philip, Nando Mendoza, Daina and others. He determines there was a man who an Indian boy Oliver Dan saw leaving a pickup near the tracks. Additionally, there was a carjacking shortly after the murder in which he believes the murderer killed the owner to use his car as a getaway, since the boys had stolen the pickup. He finds out that there is an assassin, El Cuchillo (the Blade), Timothy Atwater, who works for the cartel the Zetas, and eventually he determines that Streeter could have found El Cuchillo through his drug contact, Reynaldo, a major drug supplier in PDX. Cal finds another murder victim, CJ Manion, a girlfriend of the killer who knows too much, and is nearly picked up for that as he was seen there shortly after the body is discovered.
El Cuchillo comes after Cal and when killing him as he fishes with Philip is unsuccessful, he kidnaps Claire to get Cal to come to him. Cal and Daina had found the cabin where he was before he expected and he goes planning to save her, only to be discovered and ends up digging three graves. Philip and Diana comes to the rescue at the last minute. Archie survives a severe beating. In the process of the case Cal discovers that Daina is from Russia. When there is an explosion in the apartment next to hers she finds the documents for her friend who dies, and takes them to assume a new identity and life, so she does not have to return to Russia. Cal keeps her secret and begins a relationship with her when she returns to Seattle. This was a suspenseful and fast moving book, and thoroughly entertaining.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 18, 2018
I admit it - I'm a sucker for books set in places I am familiar with, especially Oregon. And I am a sucker for books with serious trout fishing. This book, the 2nd in the Claxton series doesn't disappoint on both counts. That said, the story is set off by the murder of a business executive while on a guided fishing trip on the Deschutes River in central Oregon. The intrigue among the players in the executives company bring plenty of suspects and complexity to the story. Add in a pair of police detectives trying to solve the case, one of whom is thuggish beyond belief, complicate things even further. Claxton is framed as the murderer, and he goes to ever more dangerous tactics to solve the case and exonerate himself. The book is very enjoyable to read, although it could have used a more rigorous proof-reading (are you reading this Poison Pen Press?)
July 13, 2024
Dead Float – A Cal Claxton Oregon Mystery – Published 2014 - *** - Cal Claxton is a former big city DA that has moved to Oregon rural area to enjoy a simpler life style. Cal is asked by his friend, Philip Lone Deer, to help guide a fishing float trip which turns into a murder scene. The book moves along and is enjoyable but for one glaring issue. There is NO way an experienced highly regarded big city DA would ever do the series of stupid things that Claxton does. Things that can have his law license revoked and have him thrown into jail. When books become implausible, I become disenfranchised. Maybe if Claxton had been fired from his position for incompetence and had been forced to establish his solitary practice in order to survive, the action might have been more believable.
January 11, 2024
*3.25 stars
"And it's fair to say that I now understand at the gut level the enormous power a gun can impart to someone. It wasn't a revelation that brought me much comfort" (171).
"I exhaled a long breath. I felt like my canoe had just gone over a waterfall" (186).
"There is no better time to fish in Oregon than autumn, which follows summer like a good class of brandy follows a find meal" (270).
"And it's fair to say that I now understand at the gut level the enormous power a gun can impart to someone. It wasn't a revelation that brought me much comfort" (171).
"I exhaled a long breath. I felt like my canoe had just gone over a waterfall" (186).
"There is no better time to fish in Oregon than autumn, which follows summer like a good class of brandy follows a find meal" (270).
March 30, 2019
An enjoyable whodunnit
I like books set in the Pacific Northwest as I lived there and this story set in Oregon, makes the locale a major element. The plot moves at a good pace, the story is engrossing, and the ending is satisfying.
I like books set in the Pacific Northwest as I lived there and this story set in Oregon, makes the locale a major element. The plot moves at a good pace, the story is engrossing, and the ending is satisfying.
August 1, 2022
Easley's mysteries are easy to read and Cal Claxton is a easy to like character. They have the additional advantage to me to being about Portland Oregon. This one is heavily into fly fishing and makes it sound like a lovely thing to do on a hot summer day!!
September 6, 2023
2nd I’m series about an ex-Los Angeles DA who leaves after a meltdown after his wife’s suicide to live in a small town and private law practice in Oregon. He is implicated in a murder and works to solve it to protect himself and his daughter.
May 27, 2025
The beginning of the story was interesting; fishing trip is cut short by a murder. Plot line was good until the "hero" started going out on a limb at every opportunity. Unfortunately, it became more and more unbelievable at the story continued.
December 4, 2019
A good read. Fly fishing on the Deschutes can carry a plot for quite a while for me. And love the peak moment (our 'hero' is saved with a Paiute war whoop).
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September 9, 2021Compulsive read. Set in Oregon almost 10 years ago - mostly still accurate.
December 16, 2021
A solid second installment in the Cal Claxton crime series. I'll definitely be reading more.
August 9, 2022
9.5/10 great series about present-day oregon
July 19, 2023
Read from Libby
February 16, 2025
More quick, fun murder mystery. This one was set mostly at the Deschutes River in Central Oregon and the Willamete Valley wine region.
April 5, 2025
fun read, would make a good screenplay
The arc of the story and the characters far outweigh the fairly poorly edited manuscript. A real page turner in the vein of Jack Reacher.
The arc of the story and the characters far outweigh the fairly poorly edited manuscript. A real page turner in the vein of Jack Reacher.
August 28, 2015
Warren C. Easley in his new book, “Dead Float” Book Six in the Cal Claxton Mystery series published by Poisoned Pen Press gives us another adventure with Cal Claxton.
From the back cover: Cal Claxton–a former L.A. prosecutor now practicing law in Oregon’s wine country and who works to fish–has to pinch himself when his best friend and fishing guide, Philip Lone Deer, asks him to help guide an upcoming trip with a group of executives from a high tech firm in Portland. For a fly fisherman, it doesn’t get any better than the salmon fly hatch on the Deschutes River, Oregon’s legendary trout fishing venue.
The execs, however, aren’t coming just to fish. They’re engaging in a conflict resolution exercise where the future of the firm is to be determined. And Cal learns, too late, that the company’s CEO is bringing his wife, the woman with whom Cal had a fling after their last Lone Deer-guided fishing trip. Cal soon broke it off, but…
The trip through the remote Deschutes River Canyon turns ugly when CEO Hal is murdered during the first night’s camp. Everyone in the party is a suspect, especially Cal. And his knife and vest have disappeared. Does the fact that the company’s value is about to explode play into the crime? What about the freight line running along the river? Could a hired killer have come and gone from the scene of the crime by hopping trains? As two local cops come down heavily on Cal, can he come up with a water-tight solution as he did in the tricky Portland case Matters Of Doubt?
You would never believe that a fishing trip could get so out of hand and dangerous. First there is the murder. That limits the number of suspects to those that are on the trip. Well with the possibility that there was a hired assassin. The all the evidence points to Cal as the murderer. Now he doesn’t have a choice, he really has to solve the case before they arrest him. The story hums along at a fast pace as Cal is working to figure out just what is going on. All the while there is the background of the Deschutes River. I don’t fish however the imagery really makes you want to go there “Dead Float” is loaded with twists and turns and red herrings that will leave you guessing all the while you are flipping pages to find out what happens next. Mr. Easley has provided us with a marvelous character in Cal and I look forward to reading about his next adventure.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Poisoned Pen Press. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
From the back cover: Cal Claxton–a former L.A. prosecutor now practicing law in Oregon’s wine country and who works to fish–has to pinch himself when his best friend and fishing guide, Philip Lone Deer, asks him to help guide an upcoming trip with a group of executives from a high tech firm in Portland. For a fly fisherman, it doesn’t get any better than the salmon fly hatch on the Deschutes River, Oregon’s legendary trout fishing venue.
The execs, however, aren’t coming just to fish. They’re engaging in a conflict resolution exercise where the future of the firm is to be determined. And Cal learns, too late, that the company’s CEO is bringing his wife, the woman with whom Cal had a fling after their last Lone Deer-guided fishing trip. Cal soon broke it off, but…
The trip through the remote Deschutes River Canyon turns ugly when CEO Hal is murdered during the first night’s camp. Everyone in the party is a suspect, especially Cal. And his knife and vest have disappeared. Does the fact that the company’s value is about to explode play into the crime? What about the freight line running along the river? Could a hired killer have come and gone from the scene of the crime by hopping trains? As two local cops come down heavily on Cal, can he come up with a water-tight solution as he did in the tricky Portland case Matters Of Doubt?
You would never believe that a fishing trip could get so out of hand and dangerous. First there is the murder. That limits the number of suspects to those that are on the trip. Well with the possibility that there was a hired assassin. The all the evidence points to Cal as the murderer. Now he doesn’t have a choice, he really has to solve the case before they arrest him. The story hums along at a fast pace as Cal is working to figure out just what is going on. All the while there is the background of the Deschutes River. I don’t fish however the imagery really makes you want to go there “Dead Float” is loaded with twists and turns and red herrings that will leave you guessing all the while you are flipping pages to find out what happens next. Mr. Easley has provided us with a marvelous character in Cal and I look forward to reading about his next adventure.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Poisoned Pen Press. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
August 15, 2014
This is the second Cal Claxton Oregonian Mystery in the series. The first book was titled Matters of Doubt. It is obvious that author Warren Easley loves the beautiful state of Oregon and loves fly fishing. The main story focuses on these aspects and that is where Easley's strengths lie. The Northwest is my home and I love to see that it is realistically portrayed.
Fishing guide Philip Lone Deer has asked his friend, Cal Claxton, who is a former prosecutor but now a small town lawyer to accompany him on a trip to the Deschutes River with some clients from Portland, Oregon. (Cannot read Deschutes without thinking about the Deschutes Brewery but I digress). While on the trip, CEO Hal Bruckner is murdered. Can Cal solve this case in which he is a suspect ... will his past history with Alexis Bruckner fog his powers of deduction. Lots of twists and turns and everyone is a suspect.
Good series. Always like stories about the Northwest. Good mystery!
Fishing guide Philip Lone Deer has asked his friend, Cal Claxton, who is a former prosecutor but now a small town lawyer to accompany him on a trip to the Deschutes River with some clients from Portland, Oregon. (Cannot read Deschutes without thinking about the Deschutes Brewery but I digress). While on the trip, CEO Hal Bruckner is murdered. Can Cal solve this case in which he is a suspect ... will his past history with Alexis Bruckner fog his powers of deduction. Lots of twists and turns and everyone is a suspect.
Good series. Always like stories about the Northwest. Good mystery!
July 3, 2016
This is a wonderful novel of suspense, danger, framing and ingenuity. Cal Claxton is a lawyer in a small Oregon town and also works as a fishing guide for & with his friend Phillip Lone Deer, a Paiute Indian. His only other close friend is Hiram Pritchard, the local vet. His daughter Claire is in Darfur digging wells for water poor natives. Now he is not only worried about her in far off Africa, but is a prime suspect in a gruesome murder and will have to clear himself as the law enforcement officers seem to have settled on him. There are other murders, beatings, threats and kidnappings. Well written and guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat.
January 2, 2015
Wow, first book finished in the New Year. I have read his first book and this is just his second. Pretty fast moving murders. Takes place in Oregon, lots of great scenery descriptions and even though it is a murder mystery I learned a lot about fly fishing.
Some computer stuff going on-had to ask my spouse about whether it was real or not and what it all meant. Might be a novel but always a learning process...and a mystery to solve!
Some computer stuff going on-had to ask my spouse about whether it was real or not and what it all meant. Might be a novel but always a learning process...and a mystery to solve!
May 6, 2015
Another Excellent Mystery
An exciting page-turner from Mr. Easley. The crimes flow quickly in this tense thriller that keeps the reader guessing to the very end. I wanted to scream "Don't do that" several times but Cal Claxton did it anyway, and it worked. It's clear that Mr. Easley loves the outdoors and fly fishing and that might very well be an antidote to many ugly things in Cal's life. A great story.
An exciting page-turner from Mr. Easley. The crimes flow quickly in this tense thriller that keeps the reader guessing to the very end. I wanted to scream "Don't do that" several times but Cal Claxton did it anyway, and it worked. It's clear that Mr. Easley loves the outdoors and fly fishing and that might very well be an antidote to many ugly things in Cal's life. A great story.
April 1, 2016
I keep reading this series because it takes place in Portland and surrounding country. The main character is aggravating, he does the stupidest things to get himself in hot water. And the writing...I hate it when I keep noticing typos and words used incorrectly. Not sure the surroundings are going to keep me going on the series.
May 10, 2022
I read it primarily because it was set in Oregon...on the Deschutes, in Portland, in Lyle Washington where I was just 3 weeks ago, and I loved the descriptions of fly fishing because good friends are fly fishers. The story telling is pretty good but the terraine descriptions are better.
February 1, 2015
I don't read many mysteries, but this one was solid. Loved the Oregon setting and the characters even if it wasn't a challenge to figure out whodunit.
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April 1, 2017Miniseries: A Cal Claxton Mystery
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews