The Back-Door Man

Ben Perkins #1

by Rob Kantner

Detroit private detective Ben Perkins takes on the case of a wealthy widow swindled out of a fortune, but his investigation is complicated by the death of the embezzler, lethal competitors, and murder

Genres: Mystery

Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

Born in Ohio, raised in north Georgia, Rob Kantner has spent most of his adult life in Michigan. He served as a journalist in the U. S. Naval Reserve, and graduated from Eastern Michigan University with a degree in English and journalism.

Rob's business career included a series of management positions for small manufacturing and service firms. Since 1995 he has been self employed as a business management consultant.

Rob has three children: Meaghan, John, and Robert, two grandchildren: Brenna and Evan. He also has two stepchildren: Jonathan and Adrienne. He lives with his wife Deanna on their rural Michigan horse farm.

Reviews

[Maddy · Rating 4 out of 5]

PROTAGONIST: Ben Perkins, PI
SETTING: Detroit
SERIES: #1
RATING: 3.75
WHY: Ben Perkins’ day job is head of maintenance and security for an apartment complex and some private investigating on the side. He’s taken on the case of rich socialite Joann Sturtevent who was scammed to the tune of $150,000 by Arthur Barton, who did the same to countless others. When Barton is killed in a plane crash, she hires Ben to find out where Barton hid the money he had taken. He had a quite complex way of hiding the money, and Ben partners with a Canadian PI he doesn’t trust to try to find it. Perkins is an unusual PI. He does whatever needs to be done without worrying about the niceties. There’s a lot of conning going on in the book, but Ben comes up with the ultimate scheme.

[Mike Gower · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rob Kantner is my favorite author for this genre. Perkins is a detective with a can do attitude who won't quit until the job is done. No matter how confusing it gets for him.

[S.wagenaar · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book in the Ben Perkins detective series, but the third one I have read. Despite being a Shamus Award winner, and getting solid reviews back in the 80's and 90's, these books are not very common in used bookstores, nor have they been recently re-printed. And that's a shame as these have been excellent reads so far. Set in mid 80's Detroit, Ben Perkins supervises building maintenance at a condo by day, and is a P.I. as a side gig. He doesn't have a licence, nor does he feel he needs one. He has a background as a labourer at the Ford assembly line, and as a sort of union enforcer. He's single, likes beer, cigars and his Mustang. And trouble, although he does his best to avoid it. He mostly uses his brains and his contacts to solve mysteries, but isn't afraid to use his fists or his .45 if needed. The writing is clear and easy to follow, and Ben is well formed and likeable as the protagonist. I wish I had read this one first, as it does touch on his past a fair amount, but the others that I read did not suffer for being read out of order. I rank these stories up there with the excellent Patrick Kenzie/Angela Gennaro mysteries by Dennis Lehane, and that's high praise. I will be tracking down the rest of these; highly recommended.

[Meredith Galman · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first of the terrific series featuring maintenance supervisor/private eye Ben Perkins. In this one, Ben goes traveling to track down some money embezzled from his client, the rich widow and recurring character, Joann Sturtevant. Despite collecting bruises and heartbreak along the way, Ben can't be bought off his results by his rival, the villain, or his client.

[Jack Heath]

Synopsis: Ben Perkins, a straight-forward kind of guy, is both a PI and a maintenance supervisor. He's hired to find an embezzler.