When Rabbi Meltzer and the President of Grantham’s synagogue knock on Benny’s office door, they aren’t looking to sell raffle tickets. Of that much, he’s sure. They need his help in tracking down a missing lawyer who has disappeared with the life savings of half of the Jewish community. Benny kno...
I regard Howard Engel highly and dipped to four stars, because interest rose slowly. I bonded with no one. As a detective, mysteries would seldom tie to Benny personally. However I was drawn in previously because I saw why he accepted those cases, how he felt about those clients. “Murder On L...
She was cool, attractive--a real society lady--and she was in trouble. Benny Cooperman, a private eye with a hard head and a tender heart, was ready to help her in any way he could. But when her husband commits suicide the day Benny begins his investigation, the detective realizes he's dealing wi...
I picked up the pad from his desk and put my name down and added the time. It was just ten after five. As I did this, I noticed that both Forbes and Caine were still on the premises. “You’re Boris Jurik, aren’t you?” I asked the guard. He blinked back to being semi-alert. “Yeah, that’s right.” He...
No one dropped his glass, no guilty looks were exchanged. Gloria was the first to speak. “Does that mean he will go back to prison?” “He has violated his parole, dear. Society has to be protected.” Jarman looked at me thoughtfully. “I thought you said a few minutes ago that you’d never met Mr. Ro...
This time it was a man. I explained that this number had been recently reissued and suggested that he should check with the directory or the operator about the whereabouts of his friend. I envied Phil his devoted friends and was inclined to be a little hard on him for not keeping them abreast of ...
The place was tiny, much smaller than what would be viable at home at the Maple Leaf Café, yet the chef and his helper—his wife, as I thought—kept moving new people into the shop to take the places of those who had just paid up. When I couldn’t describe what a chopped-egg sandwich was and make my...
She was driving her own car, so I moved into the passenger seat and buckled up. She leaned over towards me and we kissed. I couldn’t help thinking of what a sight we must have looked: two figures restrained by seat belts, kissing with some difficulty “What kind of week have you been having?” she ...
George. He was a complete surprise to me. Maybe I’d been expecting a tall, skinny academic who still wore his rimless glasses on a ribbon. Richard was much more down to earth and easy to talk to. Over a beer in one of the nearby colleges, he told me that of all the dealers in the country, Moore s...
The floor was chilly to the touch of my big toe. As I reached for my slippers with my left foot, I noticed that there was a piece of paper attached to one of them. I had mail! I was eager to inspect it, but I put it off until I’d made a phone call. I found the number in the phone book. It only to...
It rang five times before I hung up. If he’d been there I could have told him all about the excitement of the last hour. I could have told the recording device on his phone if he had one, but Ray must be the last guy in the world to hold out against the electronic age. That reminded me of another...
I thanked my service for passing on my home number to the OPP and told her never to do it again. When I called Hart Wise, I got an answering machine, which gave me the best idea I’d had all day. I left my number and put my shoes up on my desk. I formed them into a “V” for “Victory” and thought of...
I finished reading the Dermot Keogh biography, which left me with a clearer notion of the man. It reminded me that if I wanted to know more about him, I could catch his posthumous doings on the Internet. I made a mental note. In the hammock with my toes lined up against the view of pines and birc...