Status
Available
Call number
Series
Genres
Collection
Publication
Grand Central Publishing (2022), 432 pages
Description
Fiction. Mystery. Thriller. Historical Fiction. HTML:Private investigator and World War II veteran Aloysius Archer heads to Los Angeles, the city where dreams are made and shattered, and is ensnared in a lethal case in this latest thriller in #1 New York Times bestselling author David Baldacci's Nero Award-winning series. It's the eve of 1953, and Aloysius Archer is in Los Angeles to ring in the New Year with an old friend, aspiring actress Liberty Callahan, when their evening is interrupted by an acquaintance of Callahan's: Eleanor Lamb, a screenwriter in dire straits. After a series of increasingly chilling events�??mysterious phone calls, the same blue car loitering outside her house, and a bloody knife left in her sink�??Eleanor fears that her life is in danger, and she wants to hire Archer to look into the matter. Archer suspects that Eleanor knows more than she's saying, but before he can officially take on her case, a dead body turns up inside of Eleanor's home . . . and Eleanor herself disappears. Missing client or not, Archer is dead set on finding both the murderer and Eleanor. With the help of Callahan and his partner Willie Dash, he launches an investigation that will take him from mob-ridden Las Vegas to the glamorous world of Hollywood to the darkest corners of Los Angeles�??a city in which beautiful faces are attached to cutthroat schemers, where the cops can be more corrupt than the criminals . . . and where the powerful people responsible for his client's disappearance will kill without a moment's hesitation if they catch Archer on the… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member Ronrose1
He’s not as ruthless as Mickey Spillane’s, Mike Hammer, nor as hard boiled as Ross MacDonald’s, Lew Archer. David Baldacci’s detective, Aloysius Archer is a more down to earth character. You could easily see yourself in his situations. A veteran of the war, he is trying to fit his skills
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and convictions into a world that has turned topsy-turvy. In Los Angeles in the 1950’s, it is often hard to tell who is more dangerous, the criminals or the crocked cops. Archer thinks he may have found his niche as a private detective. With the help of Willie Dash, a seasoned private eye, who has taken him under his wing, Archer is rapidly learning the ropes. While investigating his current case for a screen writer who tells him her life is in danger, his client suddenly disappears. Archer finds in Hollywood, a town built on half truths and lies, it is almost impossible to get anyone to tell a straight story. He thinks the one possible exception may be his beautiful girlfriend, who is trying to claw her way up the Hollywood casting sheets. From the breathtaking rolling hills above, through glamorous Tinseltown, to the twisted streets of Chinatown, Los Angeles is one enigma after another waiting for the right person to solve its mysteries. Archer isn’t sure if he is the one, but he is bent on trying. This book was provided for review by the Hachette Book Group and the folks at Novel Suspects. Show Less
LibraryThing member alanteder
Going the Full Marlowe
Review of the Grand Central Publishing audiobook edition, released simultaneously with the Grand Central Publishing hardcover (April 19, 2022)
[4.5]
Dream Town (2022) continues the journey of Baldacci's late 1940's/early 1950's hardboiled detective character Aloysius Archer who
Although he is still based in the fictitious Bay City, California and working for Willie Dash's detective agency, the case in Dream Town takes Archer into full-blown Chandler / Marlowe territory in Los Angeles and Hollywood. He is at first hired by screenwriter Eleanor Lamb while he is out on a New Year's Eve 1952 date with his actress friend Liberty Callahan. Lamb suspects that she is in danger and asks Archer to investigate. Soon he finds a dead body at Lamb's residence and has himself knocked out.
The case takes him further into the depths of Hollywood with vicious drug smuggling & human trafficking gangs, Chinese BDSM clubs, corrupt LA cops, and various film directors, screenwriters and actresses, many of them turning out to be more hard-boiled than Archer suspects at first. I pretty much lost count of the number of femme fatales involved.
I call this the "Full Marlowe" as this is very much Raymond Chandler territory in an old familiar setting and Baldacci is able to completely capture that ambiance. He even (perhaps intentionally?) mimics Chandler's sometimes confusing plotlines. The only thing keeping this out of 5 star territory is that Baldacci's similes and metaphors don't quite hit the peaks of Chandler's noir poetry, but then who will ever be able to do that?
The narration by Edoardo Ballerini (all male voices) and Brittany Pressley (all female voices) was excellent.
Review of the Grand Central Publishing audiobook edition, released simultaneously with the Grand Central Publishing hardcover (April 19, 2022)
[4.5]
Dream Town (2022) continues the journey of Baldacci's late 1940's/early 1950's hardboiled detective character Aloysius Archer who
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was introduced in One Good Deed (2019) with a follow-up in A Gambling Man (2021).Although he is still based in the fictitious Bay City, California and working for Willie Dash's detective agency, the case in Dream Town takes Archer into full-blown Chandler / Marlowe territory in Los Angeles and Hollywood. He is at first hired by screenwriter Eleanor Lamb while he is out on a New Year's Eve 1952 date with his actress friend Liberty Callahan. Lamb suspects that she is in danger and asks Archer to investigate. Soon he finds a dead body at Lamb's residence and has himself knocked out.
The case takes him further into the depths of Hollywood with vicious drug smuggling & human trafficking gangs, Chinese BDSM clubs, corrupt LA cops, and various film directors, screenwriters and actresses, many of them turning out to be more hard-boiled than Archer suspects at first. I pretty much lost count of the number of femme fatales involved.
I call this the "Full Marlowe" as this is very much Raymond Chandler territory in an old familiar setting and Baldacci is able to completely capture that ambiance. He even (perhaps intentionally?) mimics Chandler's sometimes confusing plotlines. The only thing keeping this out of 5 star territory is that Baldacci's similes and metaphors don't quite hit the peaks of Chandler's noir poetry, but then who will ever be able to do that?
The narration by Edoardo Ballerini (all male voices) and Brittany Pressley (all female voices) was excellent.
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LibraryThing member thewanderingjew
Dream Town, Book 3; David Baldacci, author; Edoardo Ballerini, narrator
Archer is a character that is easy to love. He is very engaging and is sometimes described as a “boy scout”, because he is a kind, sincere, moral and considerate man driven by a need to do good, or to do right by people. He
Archer escorts Liberty to a swanky party with the rich and famous. There, he meets her friend, Eleanor Lamb. When she finds out Archer is a private investigator, she hires him and promises to give him a retainer the following day at her office. She has been getting strange phone calls and thinks that someone is trying to harm her. When Archer tries to call her and she doesn’t answer, he fears for he safety and visits her home. He breaks in and trips over a body, but she is nowhere to be found. Instead, he finds that his own life is in danger. Suddenly, this woman is missing, and Archer wonders if her premonitions of danger were real.
As he investigates, he discovers secrets and lies, corruption and decadence. The town seems to thrive on it. Liberty constantly worries about his safety and Archer worries about her. The search for Ellie leads him into Chinatown and a place called The Jade. It is a place where unsavory people hang out with the rich and famous who are indebted to them. It is a place that conducts many clandestine operations. Drugs, human trafficking, cops on the take and all sorts of other unsavory people enter the picture, some with names the reader will recognize.
Does anyone Archer meets tell the truth? Do they all have secrets and double lives? This is the fifties. Women and men are not equal. McCarthy is looking for Communists. Bugsy Siegel and Meyer Lansky are taking over Las Vegas. The author has really captured the tone of the times. The narrative, the descriptions, the banter all feel very authentic.
The narrator of this book does an admirable job, although several of the women do have the same voice, making it hard to discern which one is speaking at times. However, the mystery unfolds steadily and never gets dull. I look forward to the next book in this series and the next chapter of Archer’s life. He seems to have nine lives and is a character that many will want to follow.
Archer is a character that is easy to love. He is very engaging and is sometimes described as a “boy scout”, because he is a kind, sincere, moral and considerate man driven by a need to do good, or to do right by people. He
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has a really good friend Liberty Callahan, an aspiring actress. When he goes to visit her in Los Angeles, he gets sucked into a cryptic murder investigation. Archer escorts Liberty to a swanky party with the rich and famous. There, he meets her friend, Eleanor Lamb. When she finds out Archer is a private investigator, she hires him and promises to give him a retainer the following day at her office. She has been getting strange phone calls and thinks that someone is trying to harm her. When Archer tries to call her and she doesn’t answer, he fears for he safety and visits her home. He breaks in and trips over a body, but she is nowhere to be found. Instead, he finds that his own life is in danger. Suddenly, this woman is missing, and Archer wonders if her premonitions of danger were real.
As he investigates, he discovers secrets and lies, corruption and decadence. The town seems to thrive on it. Liberty constantly worries about his safety and Archer worries about her. The search for Ellie leads him into Chinatown and a place called The Jade. It is a place where unsavory people hang out with the rich and famous who are indebted to them. It is a place that conducts many clandestine operations. Drugs, human trafficking, cops on the take and all sorts of other unsavory people enter the picture, some with names the reader will recognize.
Does anyone Archer meets tell the truth? Do they all have secrets and double lives? This is the fifties. Women and men are not equal. McCarthy is looking for Communists. Bugsy Siegel and Meyer Lansky are taking over Las Vegas. The author has really captured the tone of the times. The narrative, the descriptions, the banter all feel very authentic.
The narrator of this book does an admirable job, although several of the women do have the same voice, making it hard to discern which one is speaking at times. However, the mystery unfolds steadily and never gets dull. I look forward to the next book in this series and the next chapter of Archer’s life. He seems to have nine lives and is a character that many will want to follow.
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LibraryThing member JHSColloquium
In One Good Deed, bestselling and award-winning author David Baldacci introduced readers to Aloysius Archer, a World War II veteran who had just been released from prison for a crime he maintained he did not commit. He became embroiled in a murder mystery and helped solve the case. He so impressed
Dream Town begins with Archer, now thirty years old, and Liberty attending a posh party in Hollywood on New Year's Eve 1952. Archer still drives the 1939 red Delahaye convertible he acquired in A Gambling Man. He has spent three years working with and learning from Willie Dash in Bay Town, and is now an experienced and highly skilled investigator. Baldacci again expertly sets the scene, evoking the time period, and instantly draws readers into the time period. Baldacci wanted to write about the post-World War II era because he "finds it fascinating." It was a unique time in U.S. history. Americans were tired of being poor, having survived the Great Depression. There was a great migration to the West and, more particularly, California, the Golden State where life was sure to be better.
Gone is the Archer who survived war only to find himself in prison and then, in One Good Deed, on parole. He had to operate carefully because an infraction -- or violation staged by corrupt local officials -- could result in further incarceration. In A Gambling Man, Archer had been released from parole and was free to begin his journey to California, but he had not established himself as a competent investigator. Three years later, he is confident and self-assured, but still gets aggravated when he feels he could have handled a situation better. Archer is a multi-layered, fully formed character and very much a man of the time in which he lives. He is masculine and protective of those he believes he needs to shield from harm. He is also capable of introspection and has maintained a close friendship with Liberty while she has found modest success in Hollywood, landing supporting roles that pay extremely well, as she continues striving for the big break that will put her name on a marquee. His feelings for Liberty have deepened with time. But Liberty fears for Archer as he careens from one near-miss to another. Can she tolerate the stressors of Archer's profession? Or can she convince him to settle down and, perhaps, play a cop on a television show or in the movies?
Archer is immediately hired by Eleanor Lamb, a screenwriter living in Malibu. He is thrust into the Hollywood scene, interacting with famous, wealthy, powerful, and, in some cases, nefarious people who have much to lose. The story takes off at a brisk pace as Archer ventures to his client's home only to discover that she has vanished. He finds a dead body in the house and someone gets the jump on him as he is searching for details about the decedent's identity and actions.
Archer does not trust the police. First of all, the local force has a terrible reputation and has been at the center of scandals. More importantly, Archer has learned over the years that "anybody can be bought," so he does not provide information to the authorities as he gathers it. Archer has learned to rely only on himself and trust his investigative instincts. That wisdom is critical to the story because Baldacci reveals that money is at the root of several aspects of the plot. Which makes sense because, after all, Archer is operating in Hollywood with an eclectic cast of supporting characters who work at and operate big movie studios. There is a lot of money, along with reputations, at stake.
The story is told in Baldacci's signature style. He employs short, action-packed chapters that detail Archer's investigative efforts and his thought processes as he pieces together the clues he finds. Baldacci is known for his economy of language which always serves his stories well.
And language is an important component of the story's authenticity, of course. Archer lives in what "was a very different world" as is reflected not only in the characters' attitudes and outlooks, but also the very words and phrases they use. For instance, readers may find themselves reaching for a dictionary when Dash tells Archer to take a seat on the "davenport" in his office. (It's an antiquated term for "couch" or "sofa.") Archer uses the old-fashioned phrase, "Come again?" when he doesn't understand what another character is telling him. The way that male characters refer to and discuss women is jarring and, by today's standards, offensive. Baldacci explains that in order to adopt a historically accurate tone, he researched what life was like for women during the era. And some of what he discovered was shocking. In one scene, Archer visits a bank to inquire about Eleanor's purchase of her Malibu home. He learns that it was a cash transaction. To secure a mortgage, Elanor would have "needed a male co-signor. An unmarried woman can't get a mortgage without a suitable man signing with her." When Archer questions the practice, the banker cavalierly explains, "Banks need a guy on board to feel secure. And it's for the ladies' protection, too. Dames are clueless about money and such. They won't get taken for a ride with a sharp guy around. . . . I guess there's no law against a dame buying a house with her own cash, though there probably should be." (Women were not issued credit cards in their own names until the mid-1970's.)
And as with the previous installments in the series, locations serve as supporting characters in the story. Baldacci takes readers along with Archer to the beaches and canyons of Malibu, studio back lots, seedy parts of downtown Los Angeles, and even Orange County. One character lives in a modest tract house in Anaheim on the edge of a long-gone orange grove outside the city limits. Archer interacts with a friend of Dash's. He's a former police officer who now runs a bar near Chinatown. His name? Jake Nichols. Archer also takes a flight to Las Vegas where he mixes it up with mobsters, and makes his way to the beautiful shores of Lake Tahoe.
The story in Dream Town is another engrossing and highly entertaining journey featuring a tautly-constructed, imaginative, and often surprising plot. There are many dead bodies and numerous characters in various forms of distress, some of whom are motivated to commit heinous acts in order to preserve their wealth, power, and lifestyle. They are no match for Archer, who survives more than one assault in his quest to learn Eleanor's whereabouts and whether she was abducted or fled. And if the latter, what motivated her to disappear? Is she a victim or caught up in criminal activity?
Dream Town is a traditional mystery, in some ways outright old-fashioned. But it is also a charming and compelling escape to a time period when life was simpler. No characters send text messages or emails to each other, vehicles are large and gas-powered, the old Hollywood studio system is still operational, and society's expectations of men and women are clearly outlined. Archer, Liberty and many of the other characters smoke. (Archer's brand is Lucky Strike.) Thus, the story is also thought-provoking because it spotlights how much the world has changed in the ensuing seventy years. Best of all, Archer is attractive, endearing, and surprisingly vulnerable, and accompanying him as his latest investigation proceeds is enjoyable in much the same way as watching classic black-and-white movies. Happily, Baldacci promises more installments, noting that his research has provided plenty of material for future Archer adventures. It will be fascinating to see if any time elapses between the conclusion of Dream Town and the beginning of the next book, and if Archer, and the world, will have changed.
Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.
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the lead detective, Irving Shaw, that Shaw recommended Archer to his buddy, Willie Dash, who once worked with Eliot Ness. As A Gambling Man, the second book in the series, opened, Archer was on his way to Bay Town, California, to take advantage of Shaw's generosity and convince Dash to give him a chance. Along the way, Archer found plenty of trouble, as well as Liberty Callahan, a Reno nightclub performer with dreams of making it big in Hollywood. Finally arriving in Bay Town, Archer became Dash's apprentice and his relationship with Liberty grew closer.Dream Town begins with Archer, now thirty years old, and Liberty attending a posh party in Hollywood on New Year's Eve 1952. Archer still drives the 1939 red Delahaye convertible he acquired in A Gambling Man. He has spent three years working with and learning from Willie Dash in Bay Town, and is now an experienced and highly skilled investigator. Baldacci again expertly sets the scene, evoking the time period, and instantly draws readers into the time period. Baldacci wanted to write about the post-World War II era because he "finds it fascinating." It was a unique time in U.S. history. Americans were tired of being poor, having survived the Great Depression. There was a great migration to the West and, more particularly, California, the Golden State where life was sure to be better.
Gone is the Archer who survived war only to find himself in prison and then, in One Good Deed, on parole. He had to operate carefully because an infraction -- or violation staged by corrupt local officials -- could result in further incarceration. In A Gambling Man, Archer had been released from parole and was free to begin his journey to California, but he had not established himself as a competent investigator. Three years later, he is confident and self-assured, but still gets aggravated when he feels he could have handled a situation better. Archer is a multi-layered, fully formed character and very much a man of the time in which he lives. He is masculine and protective of those he believes he needs to shield from harm. He is also capable of introspection and has maintained a close friendship with Liberty while she has found modest success in Hollywood, landing supporting roles that pay extremely well, as she continues striving for the big break that will put her name on a marquee. His feelings for Liberty have deepened with time. But Liberty fears for Archer as he careens from one near-miss to another. Can she tolerate the stressors of Archer's profession? Or can she convince him to settle down and, perhaps, play a cop on a television show or in the movies?
Archer is immediately hired by Eleanor Lamb, a screenwriter living in Malibu. He is thrust into the Hollywood scene, interacting with famous, wealthy, powerful, and, in some cases, nefarious people who have much to lose. The story takes off at a brisk pace as Archer ventures to his client's home only to discover that she has vanished. He finds a dead body in the house and someone gets the jump on him as he is searching for details about the decedent's identity and actions.
Archer does not trust the police. First of all, the local force has a terrible reputation and has been at the center of scandals. More importantly, Archer has learned over the years that "anybody can be bought," so he does not provide information to the authorities as he gathers it. Archer has learned to rely only on himself and trust his investigative instincts. That wisdom is critical to the story because Baldacci reveals that money is at the root of several aspects of the plot. Which makes sense because, after all, Archer is operating in Hollywood with an eclectic cast of supporting characters who work at and operate big movie studios. There is a lot of money, along with reputations, at stake.
The story is told in Baldacci's signature style. He employs short, action-packed chapters that detail Archer's investigative efforts and his thought processes as he pieces together the clues he finds. Baldacci is known for his economy of language which always serves his stories well.
And language is an important component of the story's authenticity, of course. Archer lives in what "was a very different world" as is reflected not only in the characters' attitudes and outlooks, but also the very words and phrases they use. For instance, readers may find themselves reaching for a dictionary when Dash tells Archer to take a seat on the "davenport" in his office. (It's an antiquated term for "couch" or "sofa.") Archer uses the old-fashioned phrase, "Come again?" when he doesn't understand what another character is telling him. The way that male characters refer to and discuss women is jarring and, by today's standards, offensive. Baldacci explains that in order to adopt a historically accurate tone, he researched what life was like for women during the era. And some of what he discovered was shocking. In one scene, Archer visits a bank to inquire about Eleanor's purchase of her Malibu home. He learns that it was a cash transaction. To secure a mortgage, Elanor would have "needed a male co-signor. An unmarried woman can't get a mortgage without a suitable man signing with her." When Archer questions the practice, the banker cavalierly explains, "Banks need a guy on board to feel secure. And it's for the ladies' protection, too. Dames are clueless about money and such. They won't get taken for a ride with a sharp guy around. . . . I guess there's no law against a dame buying a house with her own cash, though there probably should be." (Women were not issued credit cards in their own names until the mid-1970's.)
And as with the previous installments in the series, locations serve as supporting characters in the story. Baldacci takes readers along with Archer to the beaches and canyons of Malibu, studio back lots, seedy parts of downtown Los Angeles, and even Orange County. One character lives in a modest tract house in Anaheim on the edge of a long-gone orange grove outside the city limits. Archer interacts with a friend of Dash's. He's a former police officer who now runs a bar near Chinatown. His name? Jake Nichols. Archer also takes a flight to Las Vegas where he mixes it up with mobsters, and makes his way to the beautiful shores of Lake Tahoe.
The story in Dream Town is another engrossing and highly entertaining journey featuring a tautly-constructed, imaginative, and often surprising plot. There are many dead bodies and numerous characters in various forms of distress, some of whom are motivated to commit heinous acts in order to preserve their wealth, power, and lifestyle. They are no match for Archer, who survives more than one assault in his quest to learn Eleanor's whereabouts and whether she was abducted or fled. And if the latter, what motivated her to disappear? Is she a victim or caught up in criminal activity?
Dream Town is a traditional mystery, in some ways outright old-fashioned. But it is also a charming and compelling escape to a time period when life was simpler. No characters send text messages or emails to each other, vehicles are large and gas-powered, the old Hollywood studio system is still operational, and society's expectations of men and women are clearly outlined. Archer, Liberty and many of the other characters smoke. (Archer's brand is Lucky Strike.) Thus, the story is also thought-provoking because it spotlights how much the world has changed in the ensuing seventy years. Best of all, Archer is attractive, endearing, and surprisingly vulnerable, and accompanying him as his latest investigation proceeds is enjoyable in much the same way as watching classic black-and-white movies. Happily, Baldacci promises more installments, noting that his research has provided plenty of material for future Archer adventures. It will be fascinating to see if any time elapses between the conclusion of Dream Town and the beginning of the next book, and if Archer, and the world, will have changed.
Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.
Show Less
LibraryThing member lamb521
Title: Dream Town (An Archer Novel #3)
Author: David Baldacci
Pages: 432
Year: 2022
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
My rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Aloysius Archer is the main character in the series who has been working to become a licensed private investigator. Archer is the name most of the other
The next thing Archer knows is Lamb has gone missing, and a body is found in her home. Archer feels out of his element as he must ask many of Lamb’s wealthy friends for information. However, they are less than helpful and in fact bring even more confusion to the mystery of Lamb’s whereabouts. Through many twists and turns in the plot, Archer must find out where Lamb went and who killed the man found in her home. While doing his job, Archer is finding out how he really feels about Callahan and if they do indeed have a future as a couple.
All that glitters is not gold in the movie world as Archer finds out. In fact, it has quite the dark side to it and if light were to shine, many a celebrity would be ruined. Archer doesn’t care to bring the light, just hopefully find Lamb alive and if possible, help someone out of a tight spot. With a web of mystery, murder and intrigue, Archer delves into the depravity with the hopes of living through a cesspool of villains out to protect their evil empire no matter the cost.
I enjoyed reading another Archer tale though some of the aspects of the book were unnecessary additions to the story line. The author weaves an intriguing mystery that leaves readers turning pages until the “who done it” is revealed. The ending of the book leaves me wondering if this is the end of the Archer series as loose ends from previous books seemed to be tied up quite nicely. I thought the author did a great job of taking his audience back into the 1950s era, which was a nice change from other books he has written.
I look forward to the other books coming out this year by Baldacci: The 6:20 Man in July 2022, followed by Long Shadows in October.
Note: The opinions shared in this review are solely my responsibility.
Author: David Baldacci
Pages: 432
Year: 2022
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
My rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Aloysius Archer is the main character in the series who has been working to become a licensed private investigator. Archer is the name most of the other
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characters in the stories know him as, even his boss Willie Dash. Now Archer has a new case, and it may be the death of him yet! While in Hollywood, Archer attends an event with his friend, Liberty Callahan, when he is asked by Eleanor Lamb to find out who wants her dead.The next thing Archer knows is Lamb has gone missing, and a body is found in her home. Archer feels out of his element as he must ask many of Lamb’s wealthy friends for information. However, they are less than helpful and in fact bring even more confusion to the mystery of Lamb’s whereabouts. Through many twists and turns in the plot, Archer must find out where Lamb went and who killed the man found in her home. While doing his job, Archer is finding out how he really feels about Callahan and if they do indeed have a future as a couple.
All that glitters is not gold in the movie world as Archer finds out. In fact, it has quite the dark side to it and if light were to shine, many a celebrity would be ruined. Archer doesn’t care to bring the light, just hopefully find Lamb alive and if possible, help someone out of a tight spot. With a web of mystery, murder and intrigue, Archer delves into the depravity with the hopes of living through a cesspool of villains out to protect their evil empire no matter the cost.
I enjoyed reading another Archer tale though some of the aspects of the book were unnecessary additions to the story line. The author weaves an intriguing mystery that leaves readers turning pages until the “who done it” is revealed. The ending of the book leaves me wondering if this is the end of the Archer series as loose ends from previous books seemed to be tied up quite nicely. I thought the author did a great job of taking his audience back into the 1950s era, which was a nice change from other books he has written.
I look forward to the other books coming out this year by Baldacci: The 6:20 Man in July 2022, followed by Long Shadows in October.
Note: The opinions shared in this review are solely my responsibility.
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LibraryThing member fasterhorses
There aren't a lot of books I'm willing to read that are set in the dull, white-bread 1950s, a time that is both too recent and yet too old for me to find interesting. But David Baldacci's Dream Town grabbed me and plopped me right in the middle of murder in a hot and steamy 1950s Hollywood. The
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hero is mild-mannered Aloysius Archer -- not your typical hard-nosed, chain smoking private dick, but a nice guy who respects women and the elderly (he does pack a mean punch when necessary). Baldacci's Hollywood isn't your typical Tinseltown, either. What a pleasant surprise! Show Less
LibraryThing member ZachMontana
Third book in Baldacci's Archer series and equally enjoyable to the first two. I like the way the author puts us in Archer's shoes as he goes about trying to figure out these crimes and fairly realistic roadblocks and problems though Archer is clearly better at figuring out the puzzle than most
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people. Show Less
LibraryThing member Sucharita1986
I had high hopes with the book as it is from a bestselling author, David Baldacci. But, the book was too slow to deal with. And, I am not much of a fan of slow plots, eventually, losing interest. By the time I reached climax I was just pushing myself up to read it. I am feeling very much
I could only give 3 stars to the book. Thanks to Netgalley for giving me an opportunity to read and review the book.
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disappointed that I could not write good words for the book. The plot had too many interconnected characters, and I felt totally lost.I could only give 3 stars to the book. Thanks to Netgalley for giving me an opportunity to read and review the book.
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LibraryThing member Brumby18
Nice novel very noir would have liked a bit more depth in the noir however good reading and enjoyed the lead character.
LibraryThing member Baochuan
The story follow the same fantastic writing by David Baldacci. With the twist and turn, the book has a lot of surprise and I really enjoy the story line.
LibraryThing member lbswiener
Dream Town is a well researched book. It takes place in Hollywood, California and Las Vegas in the 1950s. The locations were all real and well described. There was some super human rescues. The reader can guess who the bad guys are but probably won't guess properly which is the good part about the
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book. Four stars were awarded to this book. It is a good story. Show Less
Original language
English
Physical description
432 p.; 9.35 inches
ISBN
1538719770 / 9781538719770