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Cece Caruso Mystery #3
Shamus in the Green Room
Los Angeles writer Cece Caruso is thrilled that her biography of the legendary Dashiell Hammett is headed for the big screen. Rafe Simic, the actor cast as the lead, may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer, but the money she'll make tutoring him in the ABCs of The Maltese Falcon and The Thin Man should be good enough to feed Cece's addiction to vintage Yves St. Laurent. But when the dead body of one of Rafe's old flames is discovered—and neither the "facts" nor the hunky star's alibi add up—Cece can't help but ask questions. However, the twists in this case would confound Sam Spade himself. And in her zeal to win justice for the deceased, Cece might end up pulling the plug on the movie—if someone doesn't pull the plug on Cece first.
336 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
9 people are currently reading
207 people want to read
About the author
Susan Kandel
17 books64 followersSusan Kandel is the author of the critically acclaimed, L.A. Times-bestselling Cece Caruso mysteries, the most recent of which, DIAL H FOR HITCHCOCK (Harper, 2009) was named one of the five best mysteries of the year by NPR. Her upcoming book, DREAM A LITTLE DEATH, is the first in the Dreama Black series, and will be published by William Morrow's Witness Impulse in 2017.
Susan lives in West Hollywood, CA with her husband, Peter Lunenfeld, and her equally handsome dog, Cooper.
Susan lives in West Hollywood, CA with her husband, Peter Lunenfeld, and her equally handsome dog, Cooper.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews
April 17, 2020
Cece Caruso is a biographer of dead mystery writers. Her first book was about Dashiell Hammett, and it is now being made into a movie. Cece has been hired to help the star of the movie get into character by giving him background information about Hammett (Rafe Simic, the star, isn't into reading.)
There were a lot of characters here, some never seen, and I was confused. The ending was unsatisfying; I didn't understand it, or know if it was the true solution. I also thought there was too much about Cece's vintage clothing, with descriptions of what she was wearing each day, and what actor she was imitating.
I did like some of the background information about L.A. and the old stars, as well as the comments about Hammett. It made me want to read some of his books and a biography.
There were a lot of characters here, some never seen, and I was confused. The ending was unsatisfying; I didn't understand it, or know if it was the true solution. I also thought there was too much about Cece's vintage clothing, with descriptions of what she was wearing each day, and what actor she was imitating.
I did like some of the background information about L.A. and the old stars, as well as the comments about Hammett. It made me want to read some of his books and a biography.
December 20, 2017
Silly. Over described fashion. Trite dialogue. Not interested in reading any others of this series.
October 19, 2024
This book is a tribute to the legendary Dashiell Hammett. Yes, there is a mystery that Cece gets pulled into, but that is an aside to learning more about the author and screenwriter of such classic thrillers as The Maltese Falcon. Who knew he suffered from TB all his life? Of course, Cece's amazing vintage clothing collection is lovingly described. I know I'd ruin any one of those outfits within minutes. Amazingly, despite the dicey situations in which Cece find herself, her clothes come out unscathed. A terrific entry in the series.
August 17, 2019
Really live this wonderful series
Read
November 20, 2019I loved it so many twists and turns and so many different characters absolutely amazing!
December 11, 2019
I couldn't finish it. The plot definitely has promise. There was too much product placement that took away from the flow. Granted I was preoccupied, but it never really stole my attention.
December 7, 2022
Great detective work sprinkled with details on Dashiell Hammett and historic California. It’s more than a mystery.
May 21, 2020
The ending was very sloppy, otherwise a good read.
January 9, 2019
Cece's biography of Dashiell Hammett is being made into a movie--if, that is, CeCe can get the star, Rafi, to focus on Hammett. Aside from Rafi's lack of focus, there is the distraction of the young woman who has a picture of herself and Rafi in her pocket when the police find her body.
Rafi identifies her as a high school friend and sister of his manager, but CeCe feels something is off and doesn't intend to let go until the mystery is solved.
Generally this is a fun series, with tidbits about various mystery writers. But, in this and an increasing number of books, the amateur sleuth decides what constitutes justice. Moved down to three stars as small protest.
Rafi identifies her as a high school friend and sister of his manager, but CeCe feels something is off and doesn't intend to let go until the mystery is solved.
Generally this is a fun series, with tidbits about various mystery writers. But, in this and an increasing number of books, the amateur sleuth decides what constitutes justice. Moved down to three stars as small protest.
March 11, 2009
This is the third book in a series of seriously unserious mysteries starring Cece Caruso. The first of the series was I Dreamed I Married Perry Mason and the second Not a Girl Detective. Cece is in her 40's, tall, beautiful, and writes biographies of dead mystery writers for a living. She lives in L.A., and the setting is really detailed and vivid. I have no real desire to ever visit that city, but it is so sunny and fun in her books, it's almost tempting. In this outing, Cece's first book about Dashiell Hammett is being made into a movie, and Cece has been hired by the studio to help prep the handsome star to play Hammett. The star is a handsome but lazy movie star named Rafe Simic. Cece and Rafe are on a research trip to Hammett haunts in San Francisco when he gets called back to LA to identify a dead body. He identifies it as that of his childhood sweetheart. The story has a few twists and turns as Cece plays amateur detective to find out what happens.
(Now I love mysteries, but occasionally I have to say that the sub-genre of the "amateur detective" sometime makes me laugh when I stop to think about it. I mean, come on! Doesn't anyone wonder why people keep dying around these women? I would certainly keep my distance if I knew one of these literary descendent's of Miss Marple. Still, the key is not to stop and think about it!)
The side characters of Cece's grown daughter, and her cop boyfriend, and Rafe's best friend and manager (who happens also to be the brother of the dead girl) help round out the cast. The author's descriptions of the setting, including her charmingly dilapidated vintage hollywood home and the author's love of vintage fashion help with the appeal. It was light, but very fun. After reading this book, I think I will try and find a good real biography of Dashiell Hammett. I think he must have been fascinating.
(Now I love mysteries, but occasionally I have to say that the sub-genre of the "amateur detective" sometime makes me laugh when I stop to think about it. I mean, come on! Doesn't anyone wonder why people keep dying around these women? I would certainly keep my distance if I knew one of these literary descendent's of Miss Marple. Still, the key is not to stop and think about it!)
The side characters of Cece's grown daughter, and her cop boyfriend, and Rafe's best friend and manager (who happens also to be the brother of the dead girl) help round out the cast. The author's descriptions of the setting, including her charmingly dilapidated vintage hollywood home and the author's love of vintage fashion help with the appeal. It was light, but very fun. After reading this book, I think I will try and find a good real biography of Dashiell Hammett. I think he must have been fascinating.
December 24, 2016
more coarse language than I appreciate; but the story was interesting
August 7, 2010
The narrator is CeCe Caruso, a biographer of mystery story authors. I love the subtle way Susan Kandel pays tribute to the author her narrator is researching. In "I Dreamed I Married Perry Mason", CeCe is writing about Erle Stanley Gardner and Susan includes plot elements and characters typical of Gardner's mysteries--oil leases, divorcees, tidelands, 1940's California history.
In Shamus in the Green Room (also released as "Sam Spade in the Green Room"), heroine CeCe Caruso has written a biography of Dashiel Hammett and now been hired to consult on a film called "Dash!". Sure enough, this book pays homage to Hammett without drawing attention to that fact, subtly weaving in plot elements and characters who could have stepped right out of "The Dain Curse" (if The Dain Curse had taken place in 1960's California and included surfers.) I loved how Kandel captured Hammett's narrative style without slipping into parody. I look forward to reading all Kandel's mysteries.
New: My husband, a big Dashiell Hammett fan, said I'm all wet. Nothing about this book reminded him of Hammett!
In Shamus in the Green Room (also released as "Sam Spade in the Green Room"), heroine CeCe Caruso has written a biography of Dashiel Hammett and now been hired to consult on a film called "Dash!". Sure enough, this book pays homage to Hammett without drawing attention to that fact, subtly weaving in plot elements and characters who could have stepped right out of "The Dain Curse" (if The Dain Curse had taken place in 1960's California and included surfers.) I loved how Kandel captured Hammett's narrative style without slipping into parody. I look forward to reading all Kandel's mysteries.
New: My husband, a big Dashiell Hammett fan, said I'm all wet. Nothing about this book reminded him of Hammett!
October 29, 2013
I was a big fan of the 2 first books in the series. While I enjoyed Shamus in the Green Room, I thought it was quite different than the other two.
First off, I felt like a new reader to this series would have been lost. To get the full enjoyment from it, you would need to have a background between Cece her fiance, friends, and daughter. I'm so happy I already did. Though not necessary to the plot, I think if I didn't I would have spent too much time questioning unnecessary details.
In addition, I felt like the first two books really focused on their "theme." Like the first with Perry Mason and the second with Nancy Drew. I feel like this only only touched on Hammett briefly. You could have removed the Hammett element completely and still had a working plot.
In my opinion, the first 2 books are better reads and stand out from other mysteries because of how they follow their individual themes. This is definitely a good story and well written, but probably something I won't remember a year from now.
First off, I felt like a new reader to this series would have been lost. To get the full enjoyment from it, you would need to have a background between Cece her fiance, friends, and daughter. I'm so happy I already did. Though not necessary to the plot, I think if I didn't I would have spent too much time questioning unnecessary details.
In addition, I felt like the first two books really focused on their "theme." Like the first with Perry Mason and the second with Nancy Drew. I feel like this only only touched on Hammett briefly. You could have removed the Hammett element completely and still had a working plot.
In my opinion, the first 2 books are better reads and stand out from other mysteries because of how they follow their individual themes. This is definitely a good story and well written, but probably something I won't remember a year from now.
October 4, 2010
Ah, book #3 in the Cece Caruso series and another fine work.
This book centers around Dashiell Hammett, but unlike the other three books that I have read, in this one the protagonist's book has already been written. It's a nice change of pace. There are numerous "flashbacks" about the book and the material about Hammett (to keep the theme of giving the reader a good background on the subject) is very interesting. The plot isn't bad either!
Like the other books in the series, there are side plots with Cece's friends and family (which I found less objectionable than in the 2nd book -- perhaps because I interspersed another book between the two). It's still a "light fiction" tale, but if you like any one in this series the style and quality are virtually certain to keep you reading.
This book centers around Dashiell Hammett, but unlike the other three books that I have read, in this one the protagonist's book has already been written. It's a nice change of pace. There are numerous "flashbacks" about the book and the material about Hammett (to keep the theme of giving the reader a good background on the subject) is very interesting. The plot isn't bad either!
Like the other books in the series, there are side plots with Cece's friends and family (which I found less objectionable than in the 2nd book -- perhaps because I interspersed another book between the two). It's still a "light fiction" tale, but if you like any one in this series the style and quality are virtually certain to keep you reading.
March 8, 2009
It was fun to try a new mystery author. I liked the main character, though it was hard for me to keep the minor characters straight in my head. I thought the babysitting-a-movie-star premise would be too chick-lit for me, but the fast pacing and clever dialogue kept me turning the pages. (The movie star wrecks his car outside the main character's house just before the first meeting. She purrs, "I've been meaning to get a new fire hydrant.") And of course the material on Dashiell Hammett was fascinating.
The ending was a bit rushed.
The real mystery is, how can a woman who is five-foot-eleven and 155 pounds wear vintage clothing? Men's vintage, maybe, but not fur-trimmed skirts. Oh well, maybe she bought a lot of 1980s stuff.
The ending was a bit rushed.
The real mystery is, how can a woman who is five-foot-eleven and 155 pounds wear vintage clothing? Men's vintage, maybe, but not fur-trimmed skirts. Oh well, maybe she bought a lot of 1980s stuff.
October 15, 2011
I plodded through Shamus in the Green Room even though I read it in a large-print version, which usually goes faster for me. Whether it was the characters (the film people were just plain annoying and I didn't enjoy spending time with them) or the plot, which involved a shadowy
figure -- victim or villain?, I'm not sure. Protagonist Cece Caruso is a mystery-writer biographer and the writer in question in this book is Dashiell Hammett, subject of her first book. Cece is hired to consult on a film about Hammett for a film star who doesn't read much. When he's called to identify a body, real-life crime steps in. I liked the subsequent book much better.
figure -- victim or villain?, I'm not sure. Protagonist Cece Caruso is a mystery-writer biographer and the writer in question in this book is Dashiell Hammett, subject of her first book. Cece is hired to consult on a film about Hammett for a film star who doesn't read much. When he's called to identify a body, real-life crime steps in. I liked the subsequent book much better.
November 1, 2016
Cece Caruso, author of a fictionalized book about the life of Dashell Hammett, is hired by Rafe Simic, the hunky actor who is playing him in a movie based on her book, to help Simic get the feel of who Hammett was in real life. She has just begun when the body of Rafe's old girlfriend is found at the base of a cliff. The death is ruled a suicide by the police but Cece isn't sure and when she finds that the old girlfriend had a distinctive tattoo (which the body didn't have), she begins to look at the whole story in a different light. This was a good book but it isn't deep. It was shallow and predictable throughout. The characters were done well but the storyline left me wanting more.
October 8, 2014
I got this one because I've been getting into Hammett lately and this story is sort of about him. Sort of. The main character is a biographer of dead myster writers and in this installment she's just published one of Hammett. I guess there are other books in the series featuring other dead mystery writers. I don't think I will be reading them.
It's somewhat entertaining but the writing isn't all that good. There are so many name brands mentioned I have to wonder if the author is getting paid for advertising.
February 22, 2009
Susan Kandel has a knack for writing themed mysteries around characters that amuse or intrigue me: Dashiell Hammett, Perry Mason and Nancy Drew. This particular story centered around a Hammett biography written by the protagonist---the Los Angeles references and noir background all make the book fun.
Each of Kandel's three novels is a fun, light, and easy read. Perfect for a chilly afternoon, but not necessarily worth investing in on a sunny day.
Each of Kandel's three novels is a fun, light, and easy read. Perfect for a chilly afternoon, but not necessarily worth investing in on a sunny day.
March 8, 2009
In these books, I kind of like the characters. They're a bunch of nut jobs. But what I really like are the little details. In this one, she was supposed to be helping some actor figure out how to play Dashiell Hammett so she wanted to take him to all his San Francisco haunts. And I thought they were pretty interesting. Like this is the apartment where he wrote the Continental Op stories, this is where he got his coffee, etc.
February 29, 2012
Just another chapter in the saga of mystery writer historian turned detective. This story was wrapped around an actor about to play Dashiell Hammett in a biopic, then murder ensues and our intrepid heroine must solve the case. It was a decent distraction and the historical details about LA and Hollywood are always enjoyable.
June 16, 2020
Cece is tutoring a studly actor for an upcoming part. She is flown to San Francisco to highlight Dashiell Hammett's past.
They get a call to identify an old high school friend's body and Cece understands that the body was not Maren.
She continues to investigate despite being paid off.
Meanwhile her cop boyfriend is under scrutiny and acting funny and hiding a woman at his place.
Well done.
They get a call to identify an old high school friend's body and Cece understands that the body was not Maren.
She continues to investigate despite being paid off.
Meanwhile her cop boyfriend is under scrutiny and acting funny and hiding a woman at his place.
Well done.
June 18, 2013
This was the third book in the Cece Caruso series and the best so far in terms of pace, mystery and the comfortability of the main character in her own world. In other words, I think Susan Kandel hit her stride and I'm glad I stuck with the series. This one is about Cece, the book she wrote about Dashiell Hammett, and the movie industry. Lots of side stuff about vintage fashion and her family and friends but it doesn't overwhelm the mystery.
January 27, 2016
Writer Cece caruso is hired to help actor Rafe Simic prepare for his role as Dashiell hammett in a movie based on one of her books. While she's spending time with Rafe he's asked to identify the body of a woman who may be his old high school girlfriend. This leads Cece off onto a lot of strange adventures. The whole book is very disjointed and the story doesn't mesh together at all.
March 19, 2014
Cece's first biography is being turned into a film. As she is coaching the star on Dashiel Hammett, he is distracted by a murder. What has Cece stumbled into this time? The characters and plot were great, with shades of a Dashiel Hammett story.
Read my full review at Carstairs Considers.
Read my full review at Carstairs Considers.
January 3, 2016
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I love this series! CeCe Caruso is such a fun and eccentric character. She likes vintage fashion and old movies. She lives in Hollywood and talks a lot about the actors and places in Hollywood. There are two more in this series and then I think it's over, so that's a bummer.
I love this series! CeCe Caruso is such a fun and eccentric character. She likes vintage fashion and old movies. She lives in Hollywood and talks a lot about the actors and places in Hollywood. There are two more in this series and then I think it's over, so that's a bummer.
April 16, 2016
Cece Caruso can use the money-that's why she agrees to coach charismatic actor Rafe Simic for his role in a movie based on Cece's biography of Dashiell Hammett. When Rafe identifies the body of his former girlfriend, sister of his devoted manager, Cece finds a picture of Rafe with the girlfriend, who doesn't look like the corpse.
June 27, 2007
Fun Summer beach read. The main character is a lot of us if we had unlimited money and weren't too worried about social issues and taking ourselves seriously. I guess it's chick lit, but I've learned more new vocab from this book than others. Fun characters and a fun diversion.
May 27, 2009
I didn't think this one was very good. It did not have closure for me. I felt that the resolution was quite weak. Not as good as the first two. It also had more swearing than the others which is hard for me to read.
September 5, 2009
A bit better than #2 in the series. Fun look at Hollywood types and the mystery itself was pretty good. I love the bits about the clothes, her crazy family & friends & her quirky little house. I was always anxious to get back to this book which is a sign that it was a good 'un.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews