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Jimmy Quinn #3
Jimmy and Fay: A Suspense Novel
In the midst of Prohibition, Jimmy Quinn joins forces with screen siren Fay Wray to take on a King Kong–size case of extortion.
It’s March 2, 1933. King Kong is premiering at Radio City Music Hall, and Fay Wray is about to become the most famous actress on earth. So what's she doing hanging around a rundown Manhattan speakeasy? This Hollywood scream queen has come to see Jimmy Quinn, a limping tough guy who knows every gangster in New York—and does his best to steer clear of them all.
A blackmailer has pictures of a Fay Wray lookalike engaged in conduct that would make King Kong blush, and Fay's movie studio—with the cooperation of a slightly corrupt NYPD detective—wants the threat eliminated. Jimmy tries to settle the matter quietly, but stopping the extortion will cut just as deeply as Fay's famous scream, ringing from Broadway all the way to Chinatown.
Jimmy and Fay is the 3rd book in the Jimmy Quinn Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.
It’s March 2, 1933. King Kong is premiering at Radio City Music Hall, and Fay Wray is about to become the most famous actress on earth. So what's she doing hanging around a rundown Manhattan speakeasy? This Hollywood scream queen has come to see Jimmy Quinn, a limping tough guy who knows every gangster in New York—and does his best to steer clear of them all.
A blackmailer has pictures of a Fay Wray lookalike engaged in conduct that would make King Kong blush, and Fay's movie studio—with the cooperation of a slightly corrupt NYPD detective—wants the threat eliminated. Jimmy tries to settle the matter quietly, but stopping the extortion will cut just as deeply as Fay's famous scream, ringing from Broadway all the way to Chinatown.
Jimmy and Fay is the 3rd book in the Jimmy Quinn Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.
1 pages, Audio CD
Published October 18, 2016
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356 people want to read
About the author
Michael Mayo
11 books15 followersMichael Mayo lives in North Carolina. The years he spent in New Jersey had a lot to do with his love of Prohibition-era New York and the creation of Jimmy Quinn. He has written about film for The Washington Post and The Roanoke Times. He was the host of the nationally-syndicated Movie Show on Radio and Max and Mike On the Movies. His non-fiction books include American Murder: Criminals, Crime and the Media, VideoHound’s Video Premieres, Horror Show, and War Movies. He edited three volumes of The DVD Guide. The fifth Jimmy Quinn novel, Welcome to Jimmy's Place will be published in September, 2022.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
February 2, 2019
The year is 1933 and we’re on the eve of the inauguration of FDR. Jimmy the Stick is the proprietor of a thriving Speakeasy and is worried that prohibition is coming to an end. He has performed a lot of go-between jobs for the likes of Charles Luciano and Meyer Lansky so he seemed like a good choice for the budding actress Fay Wray to come to for help. Her new picture, King Kong has just debuted and her star power is destined for the skies. So, when she and her studio are blackmailed by somebody with dirty pictures of a look-alike, Jimmy takes the case.
This is the third book in the Jimmy the Stick series. It combines several interests of mine including prohibition era gangsters, the early Hollywood movie industry, and a noir crime feel. I’ve not read the first two books but feel a need to do so now. This is largely due to the character of Jimmy himself. The story is told in first person POV so he works well as a foil for the reader, a lens through which to see this fascinating world. His own motivations and relationships are fun to watch unfold as well. The settings are well drawn, atmospheric without getting clobbered over the head with style. The writing is top notch and the mystery plot unfolds in an unpredictable fashion.
Just the way I like it.
This is the third book in the Jimmy the Stick series. It combines several interests of mine including prohibition era gangsters, the early Hollywood movie industry, and a noir crime feel. I’ve not read the first two books but feel a need to do so now. This is largely due to the character of Jimmy himself. The story is told in first person POV so he works well as a foil for the reader, a lens through which to see this fascinating world. His own motivations and relationships are fun to watch unfold as well. The settings are well drawn, atmospheric without getting clobbered over the head with style. The writing is top notch and the mystery plot unfolds in an unpredictable fashion.
Just the way I like it.
March 19, 2017
This is an historical novel set in the last days of Prohibition, when King Kong is about to hit the big screen.
Tough PI JImmy Quinn is hired when someone is trying to blackmail Faye Wray with pornographic pictures of a lookalike in compromising positions. Quinn is hired to break up the ring. He finds a lot more than just a couple of mooks trying for a cash grab.
Pretty good, although with some anachronisms. I really enjoyed the material about the King Kong movie.
Tough PI JImmy Quinn is hired when someone is trying to blackmail Faye Wray with pornographic pictures of a lookalike in compromising positions. Quinn is hired to break up the ring. He finds a lot more than just a couple of mooks trying for a cash grab.
Pretty good, although with some anachronisms. I really enjoyed the material about the King Kong movie.
June 27, 2019
Reading the book felt like watching an old-time noir movie.
March 2, 2021
Another fantastic installment for Jimmy the Stick! This is a very well-written series, with exceptional period detail. For anyone unfamiliar with Jimmy - the entire series is great Prohibition Era fiction. Jimmy runs a speakeasy, and is always in the middle of solving some mystery or other, while simultaneously trying to stay out of the dog house and decipher the ways of women with his lady Connie. The author always gives some side stories to offer just enough of a glimpse into Jimmy's past to fill in his background for anyone newly acquainted with Jimmy, but not always the same stories, so series readers always feel like they are getting to know Jimmy a little more each book. Jimmy is a great storyteller - he's like that friend you learn something new about every time they say, Hey, Did I ever tell you about the time...
This book begins with Jimmy telling a story about the day his crew went after Maranzano - starting with a story you may know the players in or the background of, to set the time frame for you, or give you context for the main event. Then it turns into, I didn't know it at the time, but that story is connected to this one... Jimmy is out to find the culprit behind some smutty pictures of renowned actress Fay Wray. The story centers around these pictures, and there's enough information to tell you what's in the pictures, but the book does not have any explicit content. The plot is well-paced, and the mystery juicy. Jimmy is always simultaneously managing his own affairs, the speakeasy, his staff, the cops, and I'm hoping the well-placed cliff-hangar of a last line means we'll find out more about where Jimmy lands when it's all said and done.
I like that Mayo puts the reader right there with Jimmy - the reader never knows more than Jimmy does, and works out the mystery as he does.
Jimmy has all kinds of connections, and it's always fun seeing Jimmy fit the pieces of a puzzle together as he fits his own connections into it.
Sometimes I like a story where you get the picture from multiple viewpoints, and have some inside knowledge, but Jimmy is the kind of character you want to stick with. Having read the first two books, he's the kind of character that if someone told you, there's about to be some crazy stuff go down, bullets flying, and sleazy guys lurking around, you'd opt to stick with Jimmy.
Mayo also writes with some fun little details, adding in real historical people. I like that Jimmy is still carrying around his notepad and keeping up with new words. And I love how Jimmy nicknames people that he doesn't really deem important enough to the main events, like Honeybunch. (I liked her.) Mayo also pays careful attention to historical detail, and it's clear that he does extensive research. I recommend this book to any historical fiction fans, but for any fans of Prohibition Era fiction, it's a must-read.
P.S., For series veterans, I was glad to see things carrying on with Jimmy and Connie - and oh my word, what an ending! Who wouldn't want to know what's coming next?!
This book begins with Jimmy telling a story about the day his crew went after Maranzano - starting with a story you may know the players in or the background of, to set the time frame for you, or give you context for the main event. Then it turns into, I didn't know it at the time, but that story is connected to this one... Jimmy is out to find the culprit behind some smutty pictures of renowned actress Fay Wray. The story centers around these pictures, and there's enough information to tell you what's in the pictures, but the book does not have any explicit content. The plot is well-paced, and the mystery juicy. Jimmy is always simultaneously managing his own affairs, the speakeasy, his staff, the cops, and I'm hoping the well-placed cliff-hangar of a last line means we'll find out more about where Jimmy lands when it's all said and done.
I like that Mayo puts the reader right there with Jimmy - the reader never knows more than Jimmy does, and works out the mystery as he does.
Jimmy has all kinds of connections, and it's always fun seeing Jimmy fit the pieces of a puzzle together as he fits his own connections into it.
Sometimes I like a story where you get the picture from multiple viewpoints, and have some inside knowledge, but Jimmy is the kind of character you want to stick with. Having read the first two books, he's the kind of character that if someone told you, there's about to be some crazy stuff go down, bullets flying, and sleazy guys lurking around, you'd opt to stick with Jimmy.
Mayo also writes with some fun little details, adding in real historical people. I like that Jimmy is still carrying around his notepad and keeping up with new words. And I love how Jimmy nicknames people that he doesn't really deem important enough to the main events, like Honeybunch. (I liked her.) Mayo also pays careful attention to historical detail, and it's clear that he does extensive research. I recommend this book to any historical fiction fans, but for any fans of Prohibition Era fiction, it's a must-read.
P.S., For series veterans, I was glad to see things carrying on with Jimmy and Connie - and oh my word, what an ending! Who wouldn't want to know what's coming next?!
August 10, 2016
Like the black and white movies of the early thirties, life would be nothing without the many shades of gray. There are good guys and gals and there are bad in this book, but most of the characters are varying shades of gray. The main character, Jimmy Quinn, lives his life just outside the edge of the law. Jimmy is a man of small stature with a gimpy leg, but he has built a reputation as a man to be reckoned with. He owns a speakeasy in New York that caters to the rich and famous as well as the rich and dangerous. Jimmy’s reputation as a dependable go between has even reached the ears of Hollywood starlet, Fay Wray. Her first big movie, King Kong is just premiering on the silver screen in New York, where Jimmy has been one of the first to catch the opening. She comes to Jimmy’s speakeasy with a retinue of lawyers and hangers on, seeking his help to get her out from under a blackmailer’s dirty thumb. Jimmy already has his hands full with his girl friend Connie in a snit over something that he can’t figure out. What’s on more dame with a problem? Besides he can sure use the six hundred dollar retainer she is offering. With his street smarts it shouldn’t be too hard to track down a blackmailer with dirty pictures purporting to be of the luscious Fay Wray. The hard part is trying to figure out why his girl is giving him the cold shoulder. This is a very entertaining book loaded with the vernacular and idioms of the thirties, which bring this exciting time to life. Book provided for review by Amazon Vine.
September 20, 2016
Mobsters, starlets, crooked cops, and one momentous movie come together in Michael Mayo’s newest Jimmy Quinn mystery - Jimmy and Fay. What lover of classic movies and mystery could turn down the opportunity to meet Fay Wray, particularly as a damsel in real life distress? Jimmy Quinn certainly doesn’t when she comes to him with a peculiar problem - she is being blackmailed with pornographic photographs that contain a lookalike. Despite the woman in the photos clearly not being her, Fay wants the issue settled before it becomes embarrassing. Jimmie Quinn, known for his sense of honor and having one foot firmly on each side of the law is an obvious choice for a go-between. He takes his task a step further, and starts looking into who is behind the blackmail. What he finds is far more complicated, and far more deadly - implicating supposed bastions of wealth and propriety.
Set against the glimmering backdrop of a Manhattan nearing the end of prohibition, Jimmy and Fay is an enthralling mystery. I for one cannot deny the allure of early Hollywood, gangsters, and scandal. If you like historical mysteries with plenty of action and a dash of wit, look no further. I highly recommend Jimmy and Fay, and look forward to reading more of Michael Mayo’s mysteries.
5/5
I received a copy of Jimmy and Fay from the publisher and net galley.com in exchange for an honest review.
—Crittermom
Set against the glimmering backdrop of a Manhattan nearing the end of prohibition, Jimmy and Fay is an enthralling mystery. I for one cannot deny the allure of early Hollywood, gangsters, and scandal. If you like historical mysteries with plenty of action and a dash of wit, look no further. I highly recommend Jimmy and Fay, and look forward to reading more of Michael Mayo’s mysteries.
5/5
I received a copy of Jimmy and Fay from the publisher and net galley.com in exchange for an honest review.
—Crittermom
December 3, 2016
The mystery/adventure moves swiftly and Mr. Mayo does a great job peppering in his (obviously well done) historical research without overwhelming the narrative. I think this one comes down to whether you enjoy Jimmy's voice, as this is a first person narrator, and I wasn't super into it. That's purely subjective and I would still recommend this one to fans of gangster-ish, semi-hard boiled mysteries.
I received an ecopy from the publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received an ecopy from the publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
December 23, 2019
This is the third book in Mayo's Jimmy Quinn series, but it is my first. Now I want to read the first two! When Fay Wray needs some help wiping away a not-so-cheap imitation porno of King Kong, she calls on speakeasy owner and part-time detective, Jimmy Quinn. Jimmy's world runs from Chinatown to the Upper West Side, and from high end brothels to Italian cafes. It took a while to really get started, but about 70 pages in, I was hooked. And the look at old Manhattan is truly great!
July 12, 2016
I just finished Jimmy and Fay, what a great book, I loved reading it every minute, it had a lot of historical fiction, mystery and likable characters, can't wait until I read the other two books in the series. Thank you for letting me win it.
June 3, 2016
A fun entertaining, suspenseful, mystery. Characters you'll enjoy. A quick read, you'll want to add to your list.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews