Valentino Pier

Gulliver Dowd #2

by Reed Farrel Coleman

It all begins when PI Gulliver Dowd is approached by Ellis Torres, a street kid, on Valentino Pier in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn. Ellis has lost his dog, and after Gulliver helps to find the dog for him, they go their separate ways. So when Ellis is discovered beaten, unconscious and left for dead not far from the pier early the following morning, Gulliver is horrified—and suspicious. He sets out to find the attacker and learn why the boy was targeted. What Gulliver uncovers by way of bizarre clues—amidst threats of danger to himself and his loved ones—leads him on his most curious case yet. Undeniably, there is something amiss at Valentino Pier.

Genres: Mystery

144 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2013

About the author

aka Tony Spinosa

Reed Farrel Coleman’s love of storytelling originated on the streets of Brooklyn and was nurtured by his teachers, friends, and family.

A New York Times bestseller called a hard-boiled poet by NPR’s Maureen Corrigan and the “noir poet laureate” in the Huffington Post, Reed is the author of novels, including Robert B. Parker's Jesse Stone series, the acclaimed Moe Prager series, short stories, and poetry.

Reed is a three-time Edgar Award nominee in three different categories—Best Novel, Best Paperback Original, Best Short Story—and a three-time recipient of the Shamus Award for Best PI Novel of the Year. He has also won the Audie, Macavity, Barry, and Anthony Awards.

A former executive vice president of Mystery Writers of America, Reed is an adjunct instructor of English at Hofstra University and a founding member of MWA University. Brooklyn born and raised, he now lives with his family–including cats Cleo and Knish–in Suffolk County on Long Island.

Reviews

[Jeannette · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is what I really like. A condensed story that tells you all you need to know in as few pages as possible. Sometimes we all wonder why an author has to have 500+ pages to say what they could have said in 300.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

ALL lives matter, whether you're a runaway from rotten foster care, his dog, "Ugly" or Gulliver Dowd, the "little person" PI! Great short story. I want to read the other novels in this trilogy now!

[Betty · Rating 4 out of 5]

For those readers who are unfamiliar with Raven Books' Rapid Reads, I highly recommend them for commuters, or coffee/lunch breaks. They are complete stories told in a condensed time.

PI Gulliver Dowd is not your usual protagonist. I love this character--tough, gritty with heart, his stature is short and twisted but don't underestimate him. I truly enjoy his characterization that is reminiscent of the old hard-boiled pot-boiler plots of his predecessors of the early days of pulp fiction.

This is the second Gulliver Dowd book I've read but was quite different from the first. In this outing the character's soft side comes forward without making him any less of a threat to his suspects or villains as the case may be.

Befriending a young boy, obviously a street kid, he helps him find his well-named dog, Ugly. A bond quickly begins to form between them regardless of Gulliver's hesitancy about pets, dogs in particular; but when the boy is attacked and near death it's Gulliver and Ugly who seek the answers. I enjoyed the book once again along with the characters old and new. Well-written series by Reed Farrel Coleman .

[Kris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Recommended for gr. 7-up. Primarily aimed at struggling adult readers, the short sentences and simple structure feel choppy to the fluent reader. The story is full of action and should hold the attention of a struggling reader. P.I. Gulliver Dowd takes on what should be a simple missing dog case for a street kid, but after the kid is found beaten and unconscious, realizes that things are more complicated than they seemed. Dowd is described as a dwarf with accompanying physical deformities, and his physical challenges add to the difficulty of the case.

[Lesli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fast, easy read. A little confusing until I realized this is the second Gulliver Dowd book. This book is a Rapid Read -- meaning it is written for those with literacy challenges. Readers should expect shorter words and sentences. The style of writing does not detract from the mystery or characters. **This was an advanced reader copy won through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program.**

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5 only because I wish the story was longer! Great character, fun plot, perfect for less proficient, new readers...

[Freda Witt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short book, but well written. And I like him

[Diohan Pereira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is the second book of mystery.

[Aaliyah Hopkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did not like when it was repeated that the dog was ugly.It was rude.

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Second Gulliver Dowd mystery. The mystery seemed overly complex but overall a good story.

[Thelma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing fancy here. Workman-like writing, conceivable plot and characters. Relatively short novel. I liked it enough to want to check out more about the "little man" PI and his cronies.

[M. Sprouse · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've enjoyed Reed Farrel Coleman's Moe Prager books so much I thought I'd try a new series of his. This is an interesting little book that certainly kept my interest and for a while the mystery was alluring. It seemed to come off the rails toward the end. Dowd was supposedly a crack shot, but couldn't or wouldn't take a shot. The ending was just too quick and tidy. When I found out this was a "Rapid Read" I almost changed my 3 stars to 4. However, my bottom line was that I liked it, I just didn't really like it. Most RFC fans should be at least okay with this offering.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not usually a big fan of novellas but the two with Gulliver Dowd that I've read have been page turning. So far am enjoying all the Reed Coleman protagonists I've read: Gus Murphy, Moe Prager, Gulliver Dowd and Dylan Klein.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gulliver Dowd is a private investigator with a black belt in martial arts. He's also a dwarf. One day he is approached by a young street boy who asks Gulliver to help him find his missing dog. Gulliver agrees to help and also does what he can to help the boy without scaring him off. Little does Gulliver know that finding the missing dog is going to lead to an even bigger mystery and lots of danger.

Well-written, drew me in quickly and held my attention a lot better than many hi-lo stories. It has great characters and enough suspense to keep the pages turning.

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was intriguing. I picked this up because I've only just discovered Reed Farrel Coleman. Our library had this (I'd not heard of Rapid Reads before either)and it was a decent little story. Gulliver Dowd is an interesting character, I enjoy PI/noir-ish stories.
And it will be nice, having some titles for Readers Advisory that are for challenged readers. I'll look into more of these for the library.