Stateline

by John van der Zee

clean pages, tight binding, clean boards, original dust jacket, Illustrated dust jacket over cloth boards

196 pages, Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 1976

Reviews

[David Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

John van der Zee's "Stateline" is a novel I've read three times over the years, since the late 1970s when I bought the paperback. A slim novel, it takes place in Nevada and California andd tells a story that is rich with detail, peopled with complex characters, including a very sympathetic protagonist in Leo Ferrell, a former cop working as a chief of security at a Lake Tahoe casino. All of the characters are drawn with believable back stories and arcs. Each time I read this book (about once every ten years or so) I always go looking, hoping, that van der Zee has written others in this vein. So far I've not found any. But I think I'll take a look at his more recent novel Blackadore.

[SB · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid book about a casino security guard who gets stymied by a seemingly simple check cashing scam. As much about his mental state and sad life than the mystery itself. Finishing this over two days while at the second FL retreat may usher in my normal summer burst of reading.

[Margaret G Froess]

Great!

[Jack Heath]

Synopsis: takes place in a casino at the California-Nevada border. Full of interesting characters and their stories.