Vice-Cop

by Richard Deming

"Are you just going to stand there," Sharon asked the vice cop, "or do you want to join in the game?" It was in the line of duty, Matt kept telling himself as he played at love with the wild teenager. Just enough to gain her confidence - and an invitation to the orgies at the big house. But in the end, Matt was far more deeply involved with Sharon than a cop had any right to be. When the wild party began, it was too late to prevent a murder. And the vice cop was marked for victim number two.

142 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1961

About the author

Richard Deming (1915-1983) was a solid and reliable pro whose crime-writing career extended from late 1940s pulps to early 1980s digests. He also wrote several volumes of popular non-fiction late in his life.

He is most likely to be remembered as one of the most prolific contributors to Manhunt and the early days of Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine and as a paperback original writer, sometimes of novels based on TV shows (Dragnet, The Mod Squad, and under the pseudonym Max Franklin, Starsky and Hutch). He was also a frequent ghost for the Ellery Queen team on paperback originals and for Brett Halliday on lead novelettes for Mike Shayne Mystery Magazine.

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deming was a pulp era writer in the fifties and sixties. Considering how good he is at telling a story, he ought to be more well known than he is. He's best known for his Mod Squad books. As the title suggests, Matt Rudd is a vice cop in St. Cecilia. Although prologue has done a commendable job of republishing these old books, what's missing is the cover from the original 1961 paperback edition
which shows a bikini- clad woman sprawled out against a green background with a tag line about thrill parties, orgies, and murder. Essentially, under the guise a police procedural, Deming gives us a drug and sex and teenage delinquency story. Drugs, booze, sex orgies, and murder. And
Rudd is right in the middle of it, torn between his role as a vice officer
and his affection for the beautiful redhead he escorted to the party. Despite the obvious sex and drugs elements guaranteed to sell books in 1961, it's one helluva good story.

[Brett Bayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in 1960, Richard Deming's "Vice-Cop" is, at times, laughably dated—indeed, you may find yourself rolling your eyes at some of the goings-on, as I did. A non-spoilery example is that the main character, a cop, is helping to crack down on the local marijuana trade, and a good portion of the book is devoted to the goal of taking out the growers, sellers and buyers of weed. Fortunately, there's an old-fashioned murder to spice things up. The plot may be ancient and old hat, but I really enjoy Deming's style, and I'll be checking out the two subsequent books in the Matt Rudd series for sure!

[Andrew Allan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good and slightly salacious, which is a plus. But, no longer riveting crime fiction for me.