cover image Loser's Town: A David Spandau Novel

Loser's Town: A David Spandau Novel

Daniel Depp, . . Simon & Schuster, $25 (290pp) ISBN 978-1-4391-0143-8

Screenwriter Depp's inspired if uneven debut, the first in a new crime series, introduces Hollywood PI David Spandau, a former stunt man too old and beat up to work for the movies any more. Spandau's latest job is to protect film star Bobby Dye from the blackmail attempts of Richie Stella, club owner, drug dealer and Mafia player. Like everyone else in Hollywood, Richie has written a movie script, and he makes it clear to Bobby that the actor will star in the project or else a certain dark secret involving a dead underage girl will hit the headlines. As things get nastier, we meet various characters straight out of central casting—the beautiful single mom who works in one of Stella's clubs and dreams of escape; the career criminal who meets the good woman who will help him go legit. Where Depp shines is his insider's look at the intricate machinations and sordid players who really run the Hollywood machine. (Mar.)