Man With Two Faces

by Don Swaim

In Manhattan, during the depths of the Great Depression, Tokol Tokoloshe, a soldier of fortune, diamond thief, and rum runner, has turned vigilante along with his Amazonian-bred, blowgun-wielding sidekick Diana. Despite his crusade to combat evil, Tokol's past catches up with him when he's marked for death by Janus, a former confederate. As the amorously adventurous,sexually equivocal Tokol battles hit men, kidnappers, mobsters, blackmailers, Chinese tongs, spies, and Nazis, he courts celebs such as George and Ira Gershwin, Groucho Marx, WoodyGuthrie, Howard Hughes, Orson Welles, Clarence Darrow, and Walter Winchell. Tokol's battle for truth and justice leads him to an unexpected horror in Algiers on the eve of America's entry into World War Two.PRAISE FOR MAN WITH TWO FACES by Don " Man with Two Faces is an extravaganza--a wild ride through Depression-era America with hair-raising escapes, daring capers, and cameos by Clarence Darrow, Orson Welles, Albert Camus, and plenty of others from that unforgettable era. Don Swaim writes with such bravura assurance and rollicking good humor that the readers are carried along from beginning to end with little chance--or desire--to catch their breaths." S.T. Joshi, author of I Am The Life and Times of H. P. Lovecraft * "No one tells a story quite like Don Swaim. He's written a hell of a good yarn about a lovable antihero who expertly twists his way through a gauntlet of close calls, from villains' bullets and assassins' blades to tender affairs of the heart." William J. Donahue, editor-in-chief of Philadelphia Life magazine and author of Too Much PoisonPRAISE FOR THE ASSASSINATION OF AMBROSE A LOVE STORY by Don "Swaim weaves an engrossing web-work of literary references, historical detail, and ingenuous imagination. Genuine admirers of Ambrose Bierce will have no trouble falling in love with Swaim's "Love Story" - in fact, the only trouble they will have will be putting the book down for the night." Oldstyle Tales Press

247 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 15, 2018

About the author

Don Swaim is a writer, novelist, journalist, and winner of the 2011 Pearl S. Buck short story prize. His novel, The H.L. Mencken Murder Case (St. Martin's Press), was republished as a trade paperback under the Authors Guild's Back in Print program. Born in Kansas and educated in Ohio, his daily feature "Book Beat" was broadcast on major radio stations through the CBS Radio Stations News Service, and can be heard on the Internet at Wired for Books and at Book Beat:The Podcast. After a career at CBS in New York and Baltimore, Swaim founded the Bucks County Writers Workshop in Pennsylvania. He edits the web's definitive Ambrose Bierce Site. His fiction and articles have been published in small magazines and on the web.

Reviews

[C.G. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great nostalgic look at pre-WWII double agents and gun molls fighting for truth, justice and the American way, combatting world injustices of all clandestine shapes and sizes. Excellent prose, humor, tongue in cheek situations. A quick read.

[LCW Allingham · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun romp through the glitz and grit of Depression Era 30's, featuring cameos from some of most infamous personalities of the time. Vigilante philanthropist with a past, Tokol, and his bad ass radio mogul fiance, Diana, battle assassins, take down Nazis and take part in Orson Welles famous Halloween broadcast. Recommend for any fans of the golden age of radio.

[Natalie Dyen · Rating 5 out of 5]

With humor and imagination, Don Swaim takes the reader on a wild romp through the thirties and forties. Swaim evokes the era with a cast of characters that includes Woody Guthrie, Orson Welles, Clarence Darrow, and Ira Gershwin to name just a few. Full of clever dialogue and hilarious situations, Man with Two Faces is fun ride and a fun read.

[Kathy Brown]

Note: I don't use the stars rating. I thoroughly enjoyed this name-dropping romp through the 1930s. The heros are a dashing, glamourous crime-fighting couple. They are in on every major, and plenty of minor, events of the era. Entertaining, fun, and unique.

[H.A. Callum · Rating 5 out of 5]

What do "Casablanca," J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI, and 1930s radio have in common? Aside from their contemporaneity, not much, until you’ve read Don Swaim’s "Man with Two Faces."

Swaim’s novel is a thunderous tromp through pre-WWII America with plenty of gumshoe action, Nazi spy ring busting, and enough 1930s pop-culture references to keep the reader smiling. All along, Swaim keeps the mood light without being campy. It has a perfect noir feel that is as entertaining as it is nostalgic.

This is a fun and fast read that’s a bit of "Indiana Jones" meets "Sherlock Holmes" with a sprinkling of well-played humor. Swaim’s writing is a delight, and he fills his novel with characters whose memories will linger with the reader after the last page is turned. You don’t need to wait for summer blockbusters. It’s all right here in the "Man with Two Faces."