Last Ditch

Leo Waterman #5

by G.M. Ford

Seattle p.i. Leo Waterman knows the city like no one else. And he knows how to stretch the limits of the law, when necessary, to accomplish what needs to be done--a very useful talent Leo acquired from his late, larger-than-life father, once one of the region's most powerful and colorful political characters. But just how seriously Waterman senior transgressed during his time on Earth comes into question when one of "the Boys"--Leo's "residentially challenged" barfly allies--digs up a human skeleton in Dad's backyard. The remains that remain belong to "Wild Bill" Waterman's staunchest foe--an ultra-conservative muckraking journalist who vanished mysteriously thirty years before. Leo has always struggled in his father's shadow--but he's convinced that his old man was much too savvy to have committed murder--let alone to have interred the victim in his own backyard. But in order to clear his father's damaged name, the dutiful son is going to have to start digging up a very dangerous past...and do his damnedest not to get buried beneath it.   Seattle p.i. Leo Waterman knows the city like no one else. And he knows how to stretch the limits of the law, when necessary, to accomplish what needs to be done--a very useful talent Leo acquired from his late, larger-than-life father, once one of the region's most powerful and colorful political characters. But just how seriously Waterman senior transgressed during his time on Earth comes into question when one of "the Boys"--Leo's "residentially challenged" barfly allies--digs up a human skeleton in Dad's backyard. The remains that remain belong to "Wild Bill" Waterman's staunchest foe--an ultra-conservative muckraking journalist who vanished mysteriously thirty years before. Leo has always struggled in his father's shadow--but he's convinced that his old man was much too savvy to have committed murder--let alone to have interred the victim in his own backyard. But in order to clear his father's damaged name, the dutiful son is going to have to start digging up a very dangerous past...and do his damnedest not to get buried beneath it.

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Fiction, Humor, Detective

320 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Gerald M. Ford was the author of the widely praised Frank Corso novels, Fury, Black River, A Blind Eye, Red Tide, No Man's Land, and Blown Away; six highly acclaimed mysteries, featuring Seattle private investigator Leo Waterman; and the stand-alone thriller Nameless Night. A former creative writing teacher in western Washington, Ford lived in San Diego.

Reviews

[Jeff Dickison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good entry into the Leo Waterman series. The body of one of his father's political enemies is found buried in Leo's backyard thirty years after the enemies disappearance. Everyone assumes his father murdered the man and Leo tries to clear his father's name. Lots of subtle humor marks the Waterman series. Recommended.

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Likens himself to a hard-boiled PI, does Leo Waterman. Just the right combination of doggedness, somewhat misguided nobility, cynicism and wry wit to be one of my new favourites!

[Kathleen Burns · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like these mysteries. Had to read the ending twice to make sure I understood it. I must be slipping!😭. Like the crew of misfits.

[Eliana]

Funny, funny, improbable and lovable characters. Set in Seattle where the lone P.I. solves cases with the help of his version of the Baker Street regulars, a bunch of winos from downtown's Pioneer Square. Well written, political humor and atypical shamus investigations form the basis of these novels.

[Valerie Downs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always a top notch read!

I loved this book. I have loved them all with the exception of Blown Away. And that one I loved up until the surprise ending. Whenever I am looking for an entertaining read where the characters feel like old friends this author's work is like a magnet. Expect to be caught up in a good story.

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

#5 in the Leo Waterman series.

Leo Waterman, Seattle PI, finds a body buried in his backyard. Complications arise when it is found to be a 30 year old corpse belonging to the journalist sworn enemy of his politician father. Poking around gets Leo information he would rather not know, including meeting his father's long time oriental lover.

[Sho · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have now read the entire Leo Waterman series (so if anyone can recommend something similar I'll be happy to hear it) so I'm a bit sad to have finished this.

Interesting to get more of an explanation of Wild Bill Waterman and Leo's complicated feelings about him. Not enough Rebecca Duval for me but a rollicking read anyway.

[Sally Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good mystery in modern-day Seattle. Somehow though, rumpled, middle-aged, cranky men as detectives don't interest me that much. Despite that, it was a good story with interesting characters.

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't help it! Although his language is at times too colorful for my taste, Ford always makes me laugh. Leo Waterman, his loveable detective, never fails to entertain. If you haven't read him, give him a try. While Leo keeps you in stitches, his Frank Corso novels will bathe you in suspense

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another Great Leo Waterman novel. After finding a body buried in his back yard, Leo goes about trying to prove his father didn't kill him. Not as much of the homeless crew this time but a very good and well written novel!! Enjoy!

[Frank Rosch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now that's great writing!

Not only do we have an excellently woven mystery, in Last Ditch, but its full of literary gems. It was a joy to read. As always, Mr. Ford is so good at bringing his audience the intriguing North Wet. Well done, sir!

[David Highton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard to get a copy of this book, could not find a Kindle edition on Amazon. An intricate plot relying on investigating what happened more than twenty years earlier - Leo Waterman as stubborn as ever in his pursuit of the truth

[Debjo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would give it 4 1/2, if I could. Did not feel it warranted 5 stars, but it was really the best one. I was a little worried about the series cuz I found #4, Slow Burn, lacking after loving the first three. Last Ditch more than makes up for Slow Burn!

[Kurt · Rating 4 out of 5]

stayed up late reading this on our last night of vacation when I should have been sleeping.

[Paige · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like spending time with a good comfortable friend. Leo Waterman, it's not the getting there, but the going, that's good.

[Cherie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really like this series. The author has a way with words and I wish I could remember to use some of the expressions his characters use.

[Katharine Ott · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Last Ditch" - written by G M Ford and published in 1999 by William Morrow. A better than average witty mystery.

[DG · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another one right up my alley. Tough, wise guy Leo Waterman is beset by dirty, bully cops and a system that's incompetent on it's best day, and corrupt more often than not. Somehow he toughs it through non-stop resistance to his every effort.

In this book, Leo is trying to clear his father's name - an thankless task, but one he's compelled to pursue as he's lived in his father's shadow all his life. When a body is discovered that suggests his father was involved in the famous disappearance of one of his arch rivals, Leo goes full steam ahead against all recommendations to find out what really happened.

This is my 2nd Leo Waterman book, the first was "Chump Change" about a chump Leo once knew who wound up dying in front of him. I haven't read the series in order, and that's not been a problem. It might have made a small difference to follow the linear sequence, but I really doubt it. The two books I've read stood very nicely on their own with enough background provided that you really don't have to have read the prior ones to enjoy the one your with. :-)

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whether he likes it or not P.I. Leo Waterman lives in the very large shadow of his late father Wild Bill Waterman; local legend, political mover and shaker, beloved Seattle "character". Just about everybody of a certain age has a crazy story about Wild Bill. It's gotten to the point where most of Leo's memories of his father are inseparable from the good-natured rascal of local folklore.

Last Ditch finds Leo investigating some of the darker parts of his father's past. When the remains of Wild Bill's sworn enemy turn up on the family property thirty years after his mysterious disappearance, Leo refuses to accept that his father killed him. He starts investigating and gets reminded of the real man behind the legend, finding out more about his father than he probably wants to know.

Great entry in the Leo Waterman series.

[Jon · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half of this one struck me as being among the best Leo Waterman books I'd read; but the last half, as all the mysteries were revealed, didn't really satisfy. It seemed to devolve into a standard TV police manhunt. But early on Leo and his girlfriend of 19 years (who is also the county medical examiner) are being interviewed by an obnoxious cop: "Beneath the rim of the table, Rebecca squeezed my knee. Hard. Using her nails. Years of dating the same woman had taught me to interpret a wide range of nonverbal signals. The nails were a dead giveaway. I knew this one. This was, of course, the old 'if you start busting this guy's balls and make this take any longer than necessary, I'm going to disembowel you and feed your entrails to feral swine' squeeze."

[MisterLiberry Head · Rating 3 out of 5]

How far will Leo Waterman go to prove the innocence of his late, fabled father when all of Seattle assumes Wild Bill Waterman was the cause of the corpse found in the greenhouse of the family home 30 years after the disappearance of an arch-enemy? For Leo – often told even by near-strangers: “You chafe under your father’s legend” (p302) – the real question is, “How far is there?” LAST DITCH has a lot to offer as a whodunit, even poses some questions about the use-by date on loyalty and the complexities of son-father, son-surrogate father relationships.

[Anniereads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this kind of detective…horribly flawed but persistent like a pit bull. Leo Waterman is moving into his family’s old homestead and has his crew from the zoo who are drunks and homeless doing yard work where they discover the body of his dead father, Bill’s enemy, Peerless Price who has been missing for 30 years. There are several moving parts but G.M. Ford does a wonderful job of putting all the pieces back in order. His writing is reminiscent of Rex Stout and Leo reminds me of Archie. Great fun read.

[Rhonda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great fun in this 5th Leo Waterman mystery series. Leo is the P.I. son of the bigger-than-life Seattle politician, the late “Wild Bill Waterman.” When a skeleton of Wild Bills arch enemy turns up buried in the greenhouse, Leo and his ever-ready “boys”, must find out the truth about the murder, and find some interesting and dangerous history. G.M. Ford’s language,descriptions and dialogue are superb!

[M. Sprouse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perhaps the best of the series so far! Its more about the writing, the witty dialogue, the colorful "crew", than the actual mystery. Still not a bad whodunit. Nice peek into Leo's childhood and his colorful Father. Waterman is hardboiled, but in a 90s Seattle kind of way. He's not Phil Marlowe or Lew Archer, but he's Leo Waterman and pretty darn readable.

[Janice · Rating 3 out of 5]

Leo has to dig into his fathers past to prove who was responsible for the dead body of his fathers enemy, that was found in his back yard.

[Jerry King · Rating 3 out of 5]

1999

[rebecca O. webber · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series has the right combination of plot, humor and oddball characters. I suggest reading in order. In this installment, we learn lots of new information about Leo’s legendary father. Fun read!

[duffin]

enjoy this series

[Sue Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leo Waterman is a PI in Seattle, tough when needed, fair, he cares but doesn’t show it, good at zingers and says it like it is. The entertaining aspect of these books is his ‘staff’. When he needs help finding or tracking people he uses a group of locals who live in questionable places and always have a brown bag bottle handy. As Leo has noted, they are invisible to society at large and, therefore, get the answers he needs without being noticed. The interchanges he has with them are a highlight of these stories.

In this book an old body is dug up in his back yard which was his parent's back yard. The who is obvious but how and by whom is the tale. The weaving of the story is well written and moves along. Some twists but basically good reading.

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great read from GM Ford. One thing I particularly like in books is that they are alway moving forward, with none of this moody, reflective, descriptive stuff. I just like a good yarn. Ford certainly does tell great stories. His characters are interesting, the plot is clever and it is written in a way that makes it easy to read. There is none of this superfluous stuff that you get the feeling some authors use to pad the book out for some reason. Just tell the damn story! Ford does just that.