cover image Devil’s Dance: A David Spandau Thriller

Devil’s Dance: A David Spandau Thriller

Daniel Depp. Severn, $28.95 (240p) ISBN 978-0-7278-8433-6

David Spandau has a lot on his plate in Depp’s welcome third outing for the L.A. PI (after 2010’s Babylon Nights). Spandau’s relationship with lover Anna Mayhew is at a tipping point, and his absent boss, Walter Coren, has left him to run Coren Security and Investigations. Spandau agrees to take on a job for an old enemy of his, producer Frank Jurado: discovering who is trying to smear comeback director Jerry Margashack. Meanwhile, Spandau’s ex-wife, Dee, wants him to find her husband, Charlie, whose gambling debts have caught up with him. In addition, Spandau must deal with Hollywood moguls like Mel Rosenthal and mobsters like crazy Atom Baldessarian, whose three inept enforcers are known as the Chipmunks. In Depp’s capable hands, Spandau has plenty of time to ponder philosophical questions as he attempts to sort out the tangled lives and lies of others. Agent: Meg Davis, Ki Agency (U.K.). (Jan.)