Forced Entry

Tough guy Stanley Moodrow returns (after A Force of Nature ) for his third gritty bout with crime in the Big Apple. Retired from the NYPD, PI Moodrow is asked by his new love interest, Legal Aid lawyer Betty Haluka, to check into the sudden intrusion of prostitutes and drug dealers in the respectable Queens apartment building where her aunt lives. He learns of a scheme to force the rent-controlled building's tenants out so that massive profits can be realized by turning the residence into a cooperative. Violence escalates as older residents confront the hoodlums and junkies working for the sleazy landlords. Moodrow, eventually targeted for death by a crime boss involved in the proceedings, must take the law into his own hands. Solomita presents a straightforward and realistic slice of city life that is probably more accurate than many readers would like to believe. (Oct.)