{"product_id":"troublemaker-paperback-2","title":"Troublemaker - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eJoseph Hansen\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eLove and money are the easy motives in the death of a California beachfront nightclub owner, but death claims investigator Dave Brandstetter is certain of one thing: the case is going to be far from easy and the police have it all wrong. \u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Rick Wendell wouldn't hurt a flea. The big, jovial owner of the Hang Ten, a surfing-themed gay bay on the boardwalk, was loved by regulars and new arrivals alike. But Rick was found naked and dead, with a local hustler named Larry Johns standing over him, smoking gun in hand. Wendell's death is ruled as a homicide and Johns is arrested. Everyone thinks it's a simple open-and-shut case. Everyone except the death claims investigator, Dave Brandstetter. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Brandstetter, a homosexual himself, doesn't make the same assumptions about the crime scene and easy story it tells. Larry Johns had enough time to escape had he wanted to. Not to mention Johns lacked any discernable motive, especially since the $200 in Wendell's wallet was left untouched. In an investigation that takes him from sun-scorched hillside ranches to seedy boardwalk bars, Brandstetter gets to the bottom of a twisty mystery in this hardboiled and entertaining portrait of the '70s gay culture by groundbreaking poet and award-winning crime writer Joseph Hansen.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eJoseph Hansen (1923-2004) was the author of more than twenty-five novels, including the twelve groundbreaking Dave Brandstetter mystery novels. The winner of the 1992 Lifetime AchievementAward from the Private Eye Writers of America, Hansen was also the author of \u003ci\u003eA Smile in His Lifetime\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eLiving Upstairs\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eJob's Year\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eBohannon's Country\u003c\/i\u003e. He was a two-time Lambda LiteraryAward-winner.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 192\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.6 x 7.4 x 4.9 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e January 11, 2022\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42159759884423,"sku":"9781681990507","price":15.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0601\/2623\/2711\/files\/6480e50f147aef3d3ea7378c725d5375.webp?v=1733269035","url":"https:\/\/booksby.splitshops.com\/products\/troublemaker-paperback-2","provider":"Books by splitShops","version":"1.0","type":"link"}