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Chief Inspector Martineau Investigates #1
Hell is a City
HELL IS A CITY is one of the best hard-boiled crime novels from the Mickey Spillane age and shows what a loss it was to mystery fans when the author, William Ard, died very young. In the introduction, Francis M. Nevins places this novel as perhaps Ard's best. Written in 1960, it features Timothy Dane, Ard's smooth lawyer/detective fighting a corrupt city about to explode.
246 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1954
About the author
William Ard
83 books11 followersaka Ben Kerr, Mike Moran, Jonas Ward, Thomas Wills.
William Thomas Ard has been one of the most elusive writers in the collecting world.
Odd for a man who was one of the most popular hardboiled writers of the 1950s. He was praised by critics from the St. Louis Dispatch to the New York Times.
Few imagined the dark side of the city and the entertainment business better than William Ard. When he turned his gaze west, he gave life to one of the genre's most enduring heroes.
Today his name is all but forgotten. His hardboiled titles are scarce. His paperback titles in fine condition are nearly impossible to find.
While he went by many names, he is essentially a man of two faces. Ard was the creator of hard-hitting detective Timothy Dane of New York and an even harder living and loving detective, Lou Largo, of Florida.
William Thomas Ard has been one of the most elusive writers in the collecting world.
Odd for a man who was one of the most popular hardboiled writers of the 1950s. He was praised by critics from the St. Louis Dispatch to the New York Times.
Few imagined the dark side of the city and the entertainment business better than William Ard. When he turned his gaze west, he gave life to one of the genre's most enduring heroes.
Today his name is all but forgotten. His hardboiled titles are scarce. His paperback titles in fine condition are nearly impossible to find.
While he went by many names, he is essentially a man of two faces. Ard was the creator of hard-hitting detective Timothy Dane of New York and an even harder living and loving detective, Lou Largo, of Florida.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 27, 2019
Not my cup of tea but slogged through it nonetheless.
Want to Read
February 12, 2020Synopsis: when Don Starling escapes from jail, Inspector Martineau knows the escapee will be coming for him.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews