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Chester Drum #15
Francesca
A world-class criminal consultant asks Drum to keep him out of prison
Axel Spade’s Geneva office is tidier than one would expect from a man who’s wanted in twenty-six countries. A consulting criminal who sells advice on smuggling, fraud, and currency manipulation, Spade operates in style by staying on the good side of the American and Swiss authorities. But when his future son-in-law disappears after defrauding American servicemen of three million dollars, Spade becomes a target of Interpol, the CIA, and every GI with an empty wallet and a gun. He flies Washington PI Chester Drum to Switzerland to find the lost loot. But the sight of Spade’s hired goons manhandling a ruined American soldier sours Drum on helping the crook. When the destitute GI is found stabbed to death in his hotel room, Drum resolves to bring the killers to justice, no matter how stylish they might be. And of course, he won’t mind if he finds three million bucks along the way.
Axel Spade’s Geneva office is tidier than one would expect from a man who’s wanted in twenty-six countries. A consulting criminal who sells advice on smuggling, fraud, and currency manipulation, Spade operates in style by staying on the good side of the American and Swiss authorities. But when his future son-in-law disappears after defrauding American servicemen of three million dollars, Spade becomes a target of Interpol, the CIA, and every GI with an empty wallet and a gun. He flies Washington PI Chester Drum to Switzerland to find the lost loot. But the sight of Spade’s hired goons manhandling a ruined American soldier sours Drum on helping the crook. When the destitute GI is found stabbed to death in his hotel room, Drum resolves to bring the killers to justice, no matter how stylish they might be. And of course, he won’t mind if he finds three million bucks along the way.
140 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2012
3 people are currently reading
6 people want to read
About the author
Stephen Marlowe
193 books26 followersAka Milton S. Lesser, Adam Chase, Andrew Frazer, Jason Ridgway, C.H. Thames.
Stephen Marlowe (1928–2008) was the author of more than fifty novels, including nearly two dozen featuring globe-trotting private eye Chester Drum. Born Milton Lesser, Marlowe was raised in Brooklyn and attended the College of William and Mary. After several years writing science fiction under his given name, he legally adopted his pen name, and began focusing on Chester Drum, the Washington-based detective who first appeared in The Second Longest Night (1955).
Although a private detective akin to Raymond Chandler’s characters, Drum was distinguished by his jet-setting lifestyle, which carried him to various exotic locales from Mecca to South America. These espionage-tinged stories won Marlowe acclaim, and he produced more than one a year before ending the series in 1968. After spending the 1970s writing suspense novels like The Summit (1970) and The Cawthorn Journals (1975), Marlowe turned to scholarly historical fiction. He lived much of his life abroad, in Switzerland, Spain, and France, and died in Virginia in 2008.
Marlowe received the Shamus Award, "The Eye" (Lifetime achievment award) in 1997.
Stephen Marlowe (1928–2008) was the author of more than fifty novels, including nearly two dozen featuring globe-trotting private eye Chester Drum. Born Milton Lesser, Marlowe was raised in Brooklyn and attended the College of William and Mary. After several years writing science fiction under his given name, he legally adopted his pen name, and began focusing on Chester Drum, the Washington-based detective who first appeared in The Second Longest Night (1955).
Although a private detective akin to Raymond Chandler’s characters, Drum was distinguished by his jet-setting lifestyle, which carried him to various exotic locales from Mecca to South America. These espionage-tinged stories won Marlowe acclaim, and he produced more than one a year before ending the series in 1968. After spending the 1970s writing suspense novels like The Summit (1970) and The Cawthorn Journals (1975), Marlowe turned to scholarly historical fiction. He lived much of his life abroad, in Switzerland, Spain, and France, and died in Virginia in 2008.
Marlowe received the Shamus Award, "The Eye" (Lifetime achievment award) in 1997.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
July 15, 2017
"Francesca" is the fifteenth novel in the Chester Drum series and the one where the title naming convention changes from "Manhunt is My Mission" and "Peril is My Pay" to "Drumbeat Erica" and "Drumbeat Berlin." It also marks the first appearance of Axel Spade, the smuggling currency mastermind wanted in twenty countries and who often hires Drum. Besides all this, it is a great read and simply a terrific paperback original. The action all takes place in the Alps where Switzerland and France and Italy meet and snowstorms and ski meets are the backdrop. Throw in a Titian-haired Italian screen goddess, three million dollars, a vicious man, a determined thief, and hundreds of people who think they've been swindled and you've got a story. Whether the action is in the slopes or in the hidden cottages nestled in the mountains, this is a vintage Drum adventure. There are the bad guys, the damsels in distress, and a fabulous fortune if anyone can get their hands on it. Be forewarned that the action comes on so quick that you will not be able to savor this book for very long.
Marlowe just writes good pulp adventure. What else is there to say?
Marlowe just writes good pulp adventure. What else is there to say?
December 4, 2014
A great entry in the Chester Drum series. A man who makes his living advising black marketeers hires Drum to find a man who embezzled three million dollars from a private bank. Complicating matters are the adviser's daughter, who is in love with the embezzler, and Francesca, the adviser's Italian movie star girlfriend.
Drum races around in Switzerland, does a lot of skiing, unravels a lot of mystery, and gets to the bottom of things. A lot of tension and suspense. The Chester Drum books should be much better known.
Drum races around in Switzerland, does a lot of skiing, unravels a lot of mystery, and gets to the bottom of things. A lot of tension and suspense. The Chester Drum books should be much better known.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews