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Dave Brandstetter
Brandstetter & others: Five fictions
Mystery
235 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1984
58 people want to read
About the author
Joseph Hansen
132 books158 followersJoseph Hansen (1923–2004) was an American author of mysteries. The son of a South Dakota shoemaker, he moved to a California citrus farm with his family in 1936. He began publishing poetry in the New Yorker in the 1950s, and joined the editorial teams of gay magazines ONE and Tangents in the 1960s. Using the pseudonyms Rose Brock and James Colton, Hansen published five novels and a collection of short stories before the appearance of Fadeout (1970), the first novel published under his own name.
The book introduced street-smart insurance investigator Dave Brandstetter, a complex, openly gay hero who grew and changed over the series’s twelve novels. By the time Hansen concluded the series with A Country of Old Men (1990), Brandstetter was older, melancholy, and ready for retirement. The 1992 recipient of the Private Eye Writers of America’s Lifetime Achievement Award, Hansen published several more novels before his death in 2004.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. This profile may contain books from multiple authors of this name.
The book introduced street-smart insurance investigator Dave Brandstetter, a complex, openly gay hero who grew and changed over the series’s twelve novels. By the time Hansen concluded the series with A Country of Old Men (1990), Brandstetter was older, melancholy, and ready for retirement. The 1992 recipient of the Private Eye Writers of America’s Lifetime Achievement Award, Hansen published several more novels before his death in 2004.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. This profile may contain books from multiple authors of this name.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 2, 2017
Election Day - A Dave Brandstetter short mystery - Fantastic story, just like all twelve books in the Brandstetter series. It was good to see Dave and Cecil again, like long-lost friends, and the mystery was good too.
The Anderson Boy - A random short story that's part mystery. This was well written, but just wasn't for me.
The Tango Bear - A Bohannon short mystery. I didn't know this was a Bohannon story before deciding to read the book. I haven't read the Bohannon books yet. But reading this, I'm very excited to start them. I like Bohannon as a character, and the mystery too. Hansen's writing style works really well for the western setting, making it really come alive.
Surf - A Dave Brandstetter short mystery. This one was shorter than the first one and didn't include many of the regular supporting cast that can be found in the novels. I was sad Cecil wasn't in it. But that said, it was still a very good mystery. I still love Dave. So much!
Willow's Money - A random short story. Not sure what to say about this one. It wasn't for me. It was actually depressing and I didn't like the main lesbian couple, mostly because they were delusional about money, love, and life in general. Of course it was well written, but I had a hard time getting through it, and it's one of the longer ones.
In short, I loved three of these and strongly disliked two of them
The Anderson Boy - A random short story that's part mystery. This was well written, but just wasn't for me.
The Tango Bear - A Bohannon short mystery. I didn't know this was a Bohannon story before deciding to read the book. I haven't read the Bohannon books yet. But reading this, I'm very excited to start them. I like Bohannon as a character, and the mystery too. Hansen's writing style works really well for the western setting, making it really come alive.
Surf - A Dave Brandstetter short mystery. This one was shorter than the first one and didn't include many of the regular supporting cast that can be found in the novels. I was sad Cecil wasn't in it. But that said, it was still a very good mystery. I still love Dave. So much!
Willow's Money - A random short story. Not sure what to say about this one. It wasn't for me. It was actually depressing and I didn't like the main lesbian couple, mostly because they were delusional about money, love, and life in general. Of course it was well written, but I had a hard time getting through it, and it's one of the longer ones.
In short, I loved three of these and strongly disliked two of them
July 20, 2022
BRANDSTETTER, BOHANNON, AND OTHERS
Joseph Hansen is at his peak in Brandstetter & Others: Five Fictions. These mystery stories are intriguing from the first page to the last.
Hansen’s prose is lean and to the point. He describes the weather, the geography, exteriors and interiors, the height, weight, and hair color of his characters and the clothes they are wearing, with just a few, perfect words. This description of a room in the story “Surf” lets you know you are in the 1970s: “The room was white shag carpet, long low fake-fur coaches, swag lamps in red and blue pebbled glass.” Hansen lets you know a lot about his characters by what they say and how they say it, in as few words as possible, of course. Hansen’s dialogue moves each story quickly along its trajectory. And, since this collection of stories was published in 1984, the characters smoke like chimneys.
Brandstetter & Others contains two stories featuring Dave Brandstetter: “Election Day” and “Surf.” Brandstetter is the gay insurance investigator who is the main character in twelve mysteries written by Hansen. Hack Bohannon, who is featured in three story collections by Hansen, appears in “The Tango Bear.” Bohannon, straight, is as charismatic a character as Brandstetter.
The front jacket flap of the hardcover edition of Brandstetter & Others does a good job of describing each of the five stories, so I will, as I like to do with story collections, give the title of each story and quote a provocative line from it to pique prospective readers’ interests in reading the stories.
“Election Day”: “Talented people have a miserable time of it.”
“The Anderson Boy”: “Anybody can kill. We know that now. It just depends on the circumstances.”
“The Tango Bear”: “If your stupidity brought harm to someone you loved, you lived with that.”
“Surf”: “It was Dave’s day for living rooms facing the Pacific.”
“Willow’s Money”: “It came as a shock to learn that they were simply drunk, a couple of staggering, stupefied, food-spilling, mumbling, giggling, falling-down wretches, unable to help themselves or each other.”
If you’ve never read Joseph Hansen, Brandstetter & Others is a good place to start. After reading this book, I’m sure that you will seek out other mysteries by Joseph Hansen, one of the best mystery writers ever.
Joseph Hansen is at his peak in Brandstetter & Others: Five Fictions. These mystery stories are intriguing from the first page to the last.
Hansen’s prose is lean and to the point. He describes the weather, the geography, exteriors and interiors, the height, weight, and hair color of his characters and the clothes they are wearing, with just a few, perfect words. This description of a room in the story “Surf” lets you know you are in the 1970s: “The room was white shag carpet, long low fake-fur coaches, swag lamps in red and blue pebbled glass.” Hansen lets you know a lot about his characters by what they say and how they say it, in as few words as possible, of course. Hansen’s dialogue moves each story quickly along its trajectory. And, since this collection of stories was published in 1984, the characters smoke like chimneys.
Brandstetter & Others contains two stories featuring Dave Brandstetter: “Election Day” and “Surf.” Brandstetter is the gay insurance investigator who is the main character in twelve mysteries written by Hansen. Hack Bohannon, who is featured in three story collections by Hansen, appears in “The Tango Bear.” Bohannon, straight, is as charismatic a character as Brandstetter.
The front jacket flap of the hardcover edition of Brandstetter & Others does a good job of describing each of the five stories, so I will, as I like to do with story collections, give the title of each story and quote a provocative line from it to pique prospective readers’ interests in reading the stories.
“Election Day”: “Talented people have a miserable time of it.”
“The Anderson Boy”: “Anybody can kill. We know that now. It just depends on the circumstances.”
“The Tango Bear”: “If your stupidity brought harm to someone you loved, you lived with that.”
“Surf”: “It was Dave’s day for living rooms facing the Pacific.”
“Willow’s Money”: “It came as a shock to learn that they were simply drunk, a couple of staggering, stupefied, food-spilling, mumbling, giggling, falling-down wretches, unable to help themselves or each other.”
If you’ve never read Joseph Hansen, Brandstetter & Others is a good place to start. After reading this book, I’m sure that you will seek out other mysteries by Joseph Hansen, one of the best mystery writers ever.
July 21, 2021
Very good collection of short stories, two with Dave Brandstetter. My favorite was the final one, Willow’s Money, about an older woman and young woman who become lovers and then tragic events alter their lives significantly - was very absorbing.
January 4, 2026
A strong collection. A little Brandstetter, and a lot more too. I particularly enjoyed The Anderson Boy. So much so, when I finished the last story, I went back and read The Anderson Boy again.
Want to read
April 2, 2025Read so far:
Election day
The Anderson boy--2
The tango bear
*Surf
Willow's money
***
Blood, snow and classic cars
McIntyre's Donald--3
Mourner
The owl in the oak
Snipe hunt
Survival
Widower's walk--2
Election day
The Anderson boy--2
The tango bear
*Surf
Willow's money
***
Blood, snow and classic cars
McIntyre's Donald--3
Mourner
The owl in the oak
Snipe hunt
Survival
Widower's walk--2
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews