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Amos Walker #32
Smoke on the Water
As the smoke from Canadian wildfires chokes Detroit, PI Amos Walker is tasked with investigating a fatal hit-and-run. The victim is Spencer Bennett, a junior law associate with the Waterford Group, and he supposedly had a file of confidential documents on him when he died. But those documents have now gone missing, and the firm is dead set on Walker finding them. As Walker digs deeper into the events leading to Bennett's death, all signs are pointing towards the crash being anything but accidental.
Summer in Detroit was hot enough before the smoke descended, but as the temperature rises and more bodies crop up in connection to the missing file, Walker will have to track down those documents -- and unearth why they were worth killing over -- before it's too late.
Summer in Detroit was hot enough before the smoke descended, but as the temperature rises and more bodies crop up in connection to the missing file, Walker will have to track down those documents -- and unearth why they were worth killing over -- before it's too late.
240 pages, Hardcover
Published February 11, 2025
5 people want to read
About the author
Loren D. Estleman
314 books279 followersLoren D. Estleman is an American writer of detective and Western fiction. He writes with a manual typewriter.
Estleman is most famous for his novels about P.I. Amos Walker. Other series characters include Old West marshal Page Murdock and hitman Peter Macklin. He has also written a series of novels about the history of crime in Detroit (also the setting of his Walker books.) His non-series works include Bloody Season, a fictional recreation of the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, and several novels and stories featuring Sherlock Holmes.
Series:
* Amos Walker Mystery
* Valentino Mystery
* Detroit Crime Mystery
* Peter Macklin Mystery
* Page Murdock Mystery
Estleman is most famous for his novels about P.I. Amos Walker. Other series characters include Old West marshal Page Murdock and hitman Peter Macklin. He has also written a series of novels about the history of crime in Detroit (also the setting of his Walker books.) His non-series works include Bloody Season, a fictional recreation of the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, and several novels and stories featuring Sherlock Holmes.
Series:
* Amos Walker Mystery
* Valentino Mystery
* Detroit Crime Mystery
* Peter Macklin Mystery
* Page Murdock Mystery
Ratings & Reviews
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
November 6, 2024
Amos Walker is what I consider an old fashioned private eye. The world may evolve but Amos feels just like he always did. Except a little older. Not in a bad way, he uses technology but the feel of the classic detective is still strong. Smoke on the Water by Loren D. Estleman is another great mystery set in Detroit and after 32 adventures with Walker I still love this series. It is as always well written and filled with all the stuff one would expect from this genre. This is a genre I grew to love at a young age reading Marlowe, Spillane and Hammett and I'm glad to see it's still alive. I must thank ForgeBooks , Macmillan and Edelweiss for giving me this advance copy of a book that is live on the 11th of February 2025.
March 9, 2025
Amos Walker, the private investigator in Loren D. Estleman's SMOKE ON THE WATER, indicates that his hometown of Detroit is divided into three parts: the automotive industry, the city government and the casinos.
As Amos is sitting at the top of one of Detroit's casinos in the area known simply as The Amnesia, he looks out onto the nearby river that separates Michigan from Canada. In true Estleman language and through Amos’ undeniable voice, he observes that the smoke on the water is the result of Ontario having caught fire in a patch roughly the size of Massachusetts.
This leads to the next case for Amos when he nearly hangs up on an attorney's office who calls him with a job proposition. Glad that he took the call, Amos proceeds to the Waterford Group. Hermano Suerte, an attorney, informs him that one of their own, Spencer Bennett, was recently killed in a terrible hit-and-run accident. Bennett left behind a small cardboard box containing information that the firm wants back. When Amos asks about its contents, Suerte deflects by claiming confidentiality. As Amos is about to walk away from the case, Suerte concedes and lets him know that what’s inside the box involves an eco-terrorist group, and it may have led to Bennett’s death.
As with much of what Estleman writes, and particularly throughout this long-running series, the language is sharp and full of all the sting and grit that you would expect from classic crime noir. Amos is a no-nonsense PI, and the attitude that goes along with that is firmly on display here. He will need all of his guile and street smarts to uncover what Bennett knew that got him permanently silenced.
At the end of his first day on the case, Amos makes a mental checklist of what he knows. Spencer Bennett was a magician who not only made a box of files disappear but also may have been run over by his own car. The man who stole it mowed him down and then was found dead in the backseat of the wrecked vehicle. Spencer’s roommate, Evan Morse, may very well know where all the files are. If that's correct, then Amos will still be in the dark as Evan is found dead in his bathroom with two slugs in his chest. Someone knew he had chatted with Amos and needed him silenced.
Meanwhile, Suerte throws another name at Amos to investigate: Francis Birdseye, who sued his eco-friendly company, Semper Solaris, for wrongful termination and was working with Bennett on the case against them. Amos also must take on the additional burden of figuring out how his longtime friend at the Detroit PD, John Alderdyce, landed in a coma after allegedly trying to kill himself via carbon monoxide poisoning in his own vehicle. He knows that John never would have chosen to go out that way and wants answers.
When Amos arrives at Semper Solaris, he is met with a lot of strange behavior --- from the receptionist to the corporate attorney to the head guy --- and has no problem believing that this paranoid bunch could be behind it all.
With more and more smoke from burning Canada beginning to fill the streets of Detroit each passing hour, we have the ideal backdrop for another extremely satisfying Amos Walker adventure. SMOKE ON THE WATER easily can be enjoyed by fans and newcomers alike.
Reviewed by Ray Palen
As Amos is sitting at the top of one of Detroit's casinos in the area known simply as The Amnesia, he looks out onto the nearby river that separates Michigan from Canada. In true Estleman language and through Amos’ undeniable voice, he observes that the smoke on the water is the result of Ontario having caught fire in a patch roughly the size of Massachusetts.
This leads to the next case for Amos when he nearly hangs up on an attorney's office who calls him with a job proposition. Glad that he took the call, Amos proceeds to the Waterford Group. Hermano Suerte, an attorney, informs him that one of their own, Spencer Bennett, was recently killed in a terrible hit-and-run accident. Bennett left behind a small cardboard box containing information that the firm wants back. When Amos asks about its contents, Suerte deflects by claiming confidentiality. As Amos is about to walk away from the case, Suerte concedes and lets him know that what’s inside the box involves an eco-terrorist group, and it may have led to Bennett’s death.
As with much of what Estleman writes, and particularly throughout this long-running series, the language is sharp and full of all the sting and grit that you would expect from classic crime noir. Amos is a no-nonsense PI, and the attitude that goes along with that is firmly on display here. He will need all of his guile and street smarts to uncover what Bennett knew that got him permanently silenced.
At the end of his first day on the case, Amos makes a mental checklist of what he knows. Spencer Bennett was a magician who not only made a box of files disappear but also may have been run over by his own car. The man who stole it mowed him down and then was found dead in the backseat of the wrecked vehicle. Spencer’s roommate, Evan Morse, may very well know where all the files are. If that's correct, then Amos will still be in the dark as Evan is found dead in his bathroom with two slugs in his chest. Someone knew he had chatted with Amos and needed him silenced.
Meanwhile, Suerte throws another name at Amos to investigate: Francis Birdseye, who sued his eco-friendly company, Semper Solaris, for wrongful termination and was working with Bennett on the case against them. Amos also must take on the additional burden of figuring out how his longtime friend at the Detroit PD, John Alderdyce, landed in a coma after allegedly trying to kill himself via carbon monoxide poisoning in his own vehicle. He knows that John never would have chosen to go out that way and wants answers.
When Amos arrives at Semper Solaris, he is met with a lot of strange behavior --- from the receptionist to the corporate attorney to the head guy --- and has no problem believing that this paranoid bunch could be behind it all.
With more and more smoke from burning Canada beginning to fill the streets of Detroit each passing hour, we have the ideal backdrop for another extremely satisfying Amos Walker adventure. SMOKE ON THE WATER easily can be enjoyed by fans and newcomers alike.
Reviewed by Ray Palen
March 9, 2025
Amos Walker, the private investigator in Loren D. Estleman's SMOKE ON THE WATER, indicates that his hometown of Detroit is divided into three parts: the automotive industry, the city government and the casinos.
As Amos is sitting at the top of one of Detroit's casinos in the area known simply as The Amnesia, he looks out onto the nearby river that separates Michigan from Canada. In true Estleman language and through Amos’ undeniable voice, he observes that the smoke on the water is the result of Ontario having caught fire in a patch roughly the size of Massachusetts.
This leads to the next case for Amos when he nearly hangs up on an attorney's office who calls him with a job proposition. Glad that he took the call, Amos proceeds to the Waterford Group. Hermano Suerte, an attorney, informs him that one of their own, Spencer Bennett, was recently killed in a terrible hit-and-run accident. Bennett left behind a small cardboard box containing information that the firm wants back. When Amos asks about its contents, Suerte deflects by claiming confidentiality. As Amos is about to walk away from the case, Suerte concedes and lets him know that what’s inside the box involves an eco-terrorist group, and it may have led to Bennett’s death.
As with much of what Estleman writes, and particularly throughout this long-running series, the language is sharp and full of all the sting and grit that you would expect from classic crime noir. Amos is a no-nonsense PI, and the attitude that goes along with that is firmly on display here. He will need all of his guile and street smarts to uncover what Bennett knew that got him permanently silenced.
At the end of his first day on the case, Amos makes a mental checklist of what he knows. Spencer Bennett was a magician who not only made a box of files disappear but also may have been run over by his own car. The man who stole it mowed him down and then was found dead in the backseat of the wrecked vehicle. Spencer’s roommate, Evan Morse, may very well know where all the files are. If that's correct, then Amos will still be in the dark as Evan is found dead in his bathroom with two slugs in his chest. Someone knew he had chatted with Amos and needed him silenced.
Meanwhile, Suerte throws another name at Amos to investigate: Francis Birdseye, who sued his eco-friendly company, Semper Solaris, for wrongful termination and was working with Bennett on the case against them. Amos also must take on the additional burden of figuring out how his longtime friend at the Detroit PD, John Alderdyce, landed in a coma after allegedly trying to kill himself via carbon monoxide poisoning in his own vehicle. He knows that John never would have chosen to go out that way and wants answers.
When Amos arrives at Semper Solaris, he is met with a lot of strange behavior --- from the receptionist to the corporate attorney to the head guy --- and has no problem believing that this paranoid bunch could be behind it all.
With more and more smoke from burning Canada beginning to fill the streets of Detroit each passing hour, we have the ideal backdrop for another extremely satisfying Amos Walker adventure. SMOKE ON THE WATER easily can be enjoyed by fans and newcomers alike.
Reviewed by Ray Palen
As Amos is sitting at the top of one of Detroit's casinos in the area known simply as The Amnesia, he looks out onto the nearby river that separates Michigan from Canada. In true Estleman language and through Amos’ undeniable voice, he observes that the smoke on the water is the result of Ontario having caught fire in a patch roughly the size of Massachusetts.
This leads to the next case for Amos when he nearly hangs up on an attorney's office who calls him with a job proposition. Glad that he took the call, Amos proceeds to the Waterford Group. Hermano Suerte, an attorney, informs him that one of their own, Spencer Bennett, was recently killed in a terrible hit-and-run accident. Bennett left behind a small cardboard box containing information that the firm wants back. When Amos asks about its contents, Suerte deflects by claiming confidentiality. As Amos is about to walk away from the case, Suerte concedes and lets him know that what’s inside the box involves an eco-terrorist group, and it may have led to Bennett’s death.
As with much of what Estleman writes, and particularly throughout this long-running series, the language is sharp and full of all the sting and grit that you would expect from classic crime noir. Amos is a no-nonsense PI, and the attitude that goes along with that is firmly on display here. He will need all of his guile and street smarts to uncover what Bennett knew that got him permanently silenced.
At the end of his first day on the case, Amos makes a mental checklist of what he knows. Spencer Bennett was a magician who not only made a box of files disappear but also may have been run over by his own car. The man who stole it mowed him down and then was found dead in the backseat of the wrecked vehicle. Spencer’s roommate, Evan Morse, may very well know where all the files are. If that's correct, then Amos will still be in the dark as Evan is found dead in his bathroom with two slugs in his chest. Someone knew he had chatted with Amos and needed him silenced.
Meanwhile, Suerte throws another name at Amos to investigate: Francis Birdseye, who sued his eco-friendly company, Semper Solaris, for wrongful termination and was working with Bennett on the case against them. Amos also must take on the additional burden of figuring out how his longtime friend at the Detroit PD, John Alderdyce, landed in a coma after allegedly trying to kill himself via carbon monoxide poisoning in his own vehicle. He knows that John never would have chosen to go out that way and wants answers.
When Amos arrives at Semper Solaris, he is met with a lot of strange behavior --- from the receptionist to the corporate attorney to the head guy --- and has no problem believing that this paranoid bunch could be behind it all.
With more and more smoke from burning Canada beginning to fill the streets of Detroit each passing hour, we have the ideal backdrop for another extremely satisfying Amos Walker adventure. SMOKE ON THE WATER easily can be enjoyed by fans and newcomers alike.
Reviewed by Ray Palen
September 9, 2024
3.75 stars
This long-running series is a throwback and so is the main character, private eye Amos Walker. Amos is getting older, maybe in his 70s by now, and he gets more world-weary and cynical with every passing year.
This one has kind of a convoluted plot involving the disappearance of a damning evidence file against a corporate giant with a great image but a horrible business ethic. The file is so explosive that more than one person dies because of it.
One of the best things about this series is the Detroit setting. Amos knows where all the bodies are buried and is familiar with the long and troubled history of his city. But somehow, even though Amos has seen it all, he still believes that bad guys should get punished and some sort of justice should prevail.
Estleman is a master of noir phrasing and pacing, and his writing is a pleasure. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This long-running series is a throwback and so is the main character, private eye Amos Walker. Amos is getting older, maybe in his 70s by now, and he gets more world-weary and cynical with every passing year.
This one has kind of a convoluted plot involving the disappearance of a damning evidence file against a corporate giant with a great image but a horrible business ethic. The file is so explosive that more than one person dies because of it.
One of the best things about this series is the Detroit setting. Amos knows where all the bodies are buried and is familiar with the long and troubled history of his city. But somehow, even though Amos has seen it all, he still believes that bad guys should get punished and some sort of justice should prevail.
Estleman is a master of noir phrasing and pacing, and his writing is a pleasure. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
February 11, 2025
Recommended.
Review posted at Tzer Island book blog:
https://www.tzerisland.com/bookblog/2...
Review posted at Tzer Island book blog:
https://www.tzerisland.com/bookblog/2...
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews