A Private Man

by Chris Laing

"July, 1947. And hotter than hell in Hamilton."
So begins Chris Laing's intriguing novel about the exploits of Max Dexter, former RCMP officer. Max, an army veteran recently discharged and limping from a serious war injury, returns to his hometown to run his own private detective agency. But he gets more than he bargained for when he takes on a missing person case for an affluent new client. Soon more than the weather is making things hot for Max and his comely new assistant, Isabel O'Brien. They become involved with arson, art theft, murder and money laundering. The trail leads through the mansions of high society and along the gritty streets of Hamilton to a rip-roaring climax in Niagara Falls.

Genres: Mystery, Canada, Fiction

320 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 15, 2012

About the author

Chris Laing is a native of Hamilton, Ontario. He worked in private business for twenty years before joining the Federal Public Service, where he served in the Department of the Secretary of State and National Museums of Canada until his retirement.
In the past few years he has expanded his long-time interest in detective stories from that of avid reader to writing in this genre. His short stories have appeared in a number of literary journals. His first novel, "A Private Man:, was published by Seraphim Editions and was a finalist for the Arthur Ellis Award for Best First Crime Novel in 2013. His second novel in the Max Dexter Series, "A Deadly Venture", was published in 2014 and it won The Kerry Schooley Award, 2015, presented by the Hamilton Arts Council.
"West End Kid: Tales from the Forties" is a collection of 9 short stories based loosely upon the Chris's experiences growing up in Hamilton during WWII. It is available as an ebook only at all online retailers.
He now lives in Kingston, Ontario with his wife, artist Michèle LaRose.

Reviews

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chris Laing, a former native of Hamilton, Ontario, is a long-time fan of the mystery genre. Growing up, he listened to mystery stories on the radio. Later he read mysteries and decided one day that he could do better than some of the books he'd been reading. So he took up writing as a hobby in his retirement. And as a result, we have his first mystery novel, A Private Man.

The story is set in Hamilton in 1947. Max Dexter, a wounded veteran traumatized by his experiences during World War II, has started a detective agency in a city which is a hotspot of mob activity. When he advertises for a secretary, he gets more than he bargained for in the person of Isabel O'Brien, an intelligent, attractive young redhead who becomes his partner in crime detection.

When a likeable yet rather reclusive accountant, Jake Benson, disappears and later turns up dead, Dexter is hired to uncover the circumstances that led to his demise. Isabel refuses to be left behind, and together they unravel a complicated web of criminal activity including, albeit tangentially, the infamous Evelyn Dick case.

In an interview with Bernadette Rule on her radio show Art Waves, Laing stated about his protagonist that he is not a "hard-boiled, dyed-in-the-wool detective in the noir tradition. He is a more thoughtful kind of guy, trying to do what's right, and sometimes he succeeds. I'd like to say that he's more of a medium-boiled gumshoe and a few shades lighter than the noir stuff."

Dexter is not only decent, he is aware (at least to some degree) of the prejudices of the 1940s. In a male-dominated society that dismisses women as "dames," he regrets that the female contribution to society is not more recognized. And in an anti-Semitic society where--even after the horrors of the Holocaust--Jews are looked down on, Dexter empathizes with them to a remarkable degree. Perhaps the detective is a touch too forward-thinking or "politically correct" for the era in which the novel is set. However, Laing manages to make these attitudes of Dexter's integral to the story, so that the hero's open-mindedness works to his advantage.

What I appreciate most of all about this novel is the research Laing has put into it. He has plundered newspaper articles, consulted archives and other sources, and worked in some of his own life experiences. A Private Man reproduces the postwar era with startling accuracy, down to the minutiae of social classes, local geography, street names, restaurants and dives, architecture, slang, sports teams, radio broadcasts and current fashions, not to mention actual historical figures. It is like experiencing an old detective film, a guided tour and a history lesson all rolled into one.

Bravo, Chris Laing!

By permission of my friend Bernadette Rule, I include here the link to the Art Waves interview:

http://archive.org/details/ChrisLaing...

Enjoy!

Update, Nov. 2013: This novel has been short-listed for the Kerry Schooley Book Award, along with GR author Jeffrey Luscombe's Shirts and Skins and Rachael Preston's The Fishers of Paradise.

[Crissy · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the tradition of Dashiell Hammett's Sam Spade and Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe, this is an exciting and interesting work of hard-boiled detective fiction introducing WWII veteran ex-RCMP PI Max Dexter. Characters are well-drawn, including Dexter's assistant, Isabel, although she fell into female stereotypes at times. Plot was exciting and kept you reading.
What I really enjoyed about this book was that it was set in my home-town of Hamilton in 1947 and it had a strong sense of place. I liked being able to recognize the street names and the favourite haunts of the characters as well as learning quite a bit about Hamilton's history. I've been saying for years that Hamilton is the best city in the world and in my opinion, it kept up with San Francisco (Spade) and L.A. (Marlowe) in its grittiness.
Also thought Laing's inclusion of his veteran characters' experiences of the war and struggles with PTSD was interesting, empathetic, and affecting.
Would recommend for those who love hard-boiled detective fiction or if you're just passionate about Hamilton!

[Jane Mulkewich · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is set in Hamilton, Ontario, which was one of the things that made it so enjoyable for me.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are from the Hammer, pick up this book!! Set in post World War II Hamilton, this book really engrossed you in the scenes and locations of the city (all of which I recognized which was pretty cool)! It was a noir mystery with hardboiled detective elements but the characters were complex and interesting. They didn't fall into stereotypes as can usually happen. Would definitely read more following Isabel and Max!

[Wendy Hearder-moan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m not actually a Hamiltonian, but since I grew up in the area and attended McMaster University, I recognized a lot of the landmarks and got a kick out of references to places I had forgotten, like the Pagoda Restaurant, the Grange Tavern and the Birk’s Clock. I think I even remember the guy that Bob is modeled on, selling his pencils in the downtown area. It was also interesting to read the back stories of Rocco Perri and Evelyn Dick who were a bit before my time (although I had been treated to “that tired joke about ‘How could you, Mrs. Dick’”, and I got a chuckle over that line). The plot was pretty engaging and I liked the character development of Max and Isabel.

[Lenore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Decent detective novel. What elevated it to a 4 star for me was that it is set in Hamilton in 1947 and generously makes use of familiar old and new landmarks. Marg Houghton, retired HPL archivist is included in the thank you notes. Two more novels with the same likeable main characters are listed in the library catalogue and on my 'to read' list.

[Dianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book takes place in 1947 in Hamilton, Ontario. Max Dexter, former RCMP officer and wounded war veteran, opens up a detective agency and gets a missing person's case and attractive assistant all on the same day. I enjoyed reading about old Hamilton and was intrigued with how so many facts were unearthed without the benefit of modern technology. A good read.

[Maureen · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting reading a crime novel based in my own home town; could see all the places named.

Reread May 2025 for Book club discussion; all our group enjoyed the book, liking Is more than Max character. We enjoyed it mainly due to the familiar locations. One of our group is already reading the second in the series and several others were interesting in doing so.

[Peggy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this a lot. It's a conventional mystery more or less: missing man, who may be guilty of embezzlement, is found murdered in a style reminiscent of the Mafia. What makes it superior is the humour in the writing and the detail about life in Hamilton, Ontario in 1947.

[Caroline Ingvaldsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A highly readable debut detective noir set in Hamilton in the heady post-World War II era.

[Lindsey Sieders · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the actual story was a bit slow for a murder mystery, however the detail of life in Hamilton made it a neat read for me!