Book Review: A Gambling Man

Synopsis:

The 1950s are on the horizon and Aloysius Archer, the straight-talking World War II veteran who served time in prison, has been discharged from parole and is free to leave Poca City where he survived a near-fatal adventure right after his release.

In need of a fresh start, Archer hops on a bus bound for California. Rumor has it there is money to be made there if you’re hard-working, lucky, a criminal . . . or, perhaps, all three. He proved to Detective Irving Shaw that he has potential and, with his recommendation, hopes to apprentice with the legendary private eye and former FBI agent Willie Dash.

During a stop in in Reno, fortune delivers Archer a wad of cash and an eye-popping. blood-red 1939 Delahaye convertible. And he meets Liberty Callahan, a beautiful companion and aspiring actress planning to try her luck in Hollywood who joins him on the journey.

When they arrive in Bay Town, California, Archer quickly discovers that he has made his way to a false paradise catering to the worst addictions and fears of the hordes of people who flocked there seeking fame and fortune.

Archer’s first stop is Willie Dash’s office. He has just landed the job when he finds himself in the thick of a potential scandal: a blackmail case involving a wealthy, well-connected politician running for mayor that soon spins into something even more sinister.

Archer and Dash infiltrate the world of brothels, gambling dens, drug operations, and long-hidden secrets. And the secrets of a corrupt town marketing itself as the promised land. It might prove to be Archer’s final resting place.

Review:

Baldacci follows up the first installment of his Aloysius Archer series, One Good Dead, by embroiling Archer in intrigue and another mystery as he attempts to launch his career as a private investigator. He so impressed Detective Irving Shaw as he assisted Shaw in Poca City, that Shaw offered to provide him with a recommendation. As the story opens, Archer is ready to leave Poca City behind him for good and make his way to Bay Town, California, to take advantage of Shaw’s generosity. He’s hoping that the renowned Willie Dash, who worked with Eliot Ness, will give him a chance. He has no way of knowing that Dash and his practice have fallen on hard times, and it will not be as easy as he’d hoped.

Nothing comes easy for Archer. A stop in Reno brings a big prize to a man who doesn’t gamble — $4,400 and a bright red, valuable 1939 Delahaye convertible, manufactured in France. But it comes with baggage and criminals chasing its former owner that Archer has to outrun in order to survive. He also meets Liberty Callahan, a beautiful woman who has been performing in a Reno nightclub but has much bigger dreams. She wants to try her luck in Hollywood. Since Archer is en route to California, he agrees to give her a ride as far as Bay Town, but not without some trepidation. After all, it’s “the start of a new life for him. Or at the very least, the potential of a new life. What if he screwed it up? What if California and his dream of becoming a PI came to nothing? Then what would he do? He’d be out there without a dime to his name, in a car he couldn’t afford to make the payments on, without the prospects of anything getting better.”

Like much of post-World War II America, Bay Town is booming. But it has a decidedly seedy side. Some of the residents are scheming to make Bay Town more respectable because that will enable them to make lots of money. Archer gets involved in an investigation involving Douglas Kemper who is running for mayor, and his associate, Wilson Sheen. Kemper is being blackmailed because he has allegedly been involved in an extra-marital affair. His father-in-law, Sawyer Armstrong, wields unfettered power in Bay Town. Midnight Moods, the local burlesque and card club (California does not permit casinos) provides Liberty the opportunity to perform, but bodies begin piling up. Working with Dash, Archer finds himself in danger as he inches closer to the truth about the corruption that is rampant in Bay Town and the agenda of whomever is blackmailing Kemper. Could the blackmailer be Ruby, a dancer at the club, Kemper’s political opponent, or even his own beautiful wife, Beth? Someone is willing to kill in order to prevent their plans from derailing. Drug addiction and long-held family secrets also figure into the mystery, which is, in typical Baldacci fashion, intricately plotted, and full of surprising twists and revelations that make the conclusion thoroughly unpredictable. Baldacci incorporates actual historical details that lend plausibility and context. The story moves at a steady, relentless pace and is, again, in true Baldacci style, told in short, action-packed chapters featuring crisp dialogue that is appropriate to the era.

Archer is not actually a gambler and he grew a great deal as a result of his experiences in Poca City. Readers learned in One Good Deed that he is handsome, principled, and a gentleman. Which is not to say that he doesn’t savor the allure of a desirable woman. But because of his past, he is guarded and does not reveal much about himself easily because he is distrustful, having paid the price for getting involved in situations he should have avoided. Baldacci introduces Liberty, a beautiful woman who is pursuing a dream and is no one’s fool. She’s also able to take care of herself — she’s no man’s damsel in distress and speaks her mind. The attraction between Archer and Liberty is palpable and quite charming, but both agree that they need to remain friends. At least for the time-being.

Baldacci’s affinity for vintage noir is again evident and he expertly evokes the time period. Every scene is carefully constructed to take readers into the world in which Archer exists. Baldacci explains that in order to make the experience authentic for his readers, he imagined a day in Archer’s life, starting with the moment he wakes up in the morning. “What do I need to know in order to describe what he would do, see, feel, and think, and interact with people over the course of one day?” he asked himself, and determined that if he could encapsulate those details in one day, he could duplicate the experience for each of the days over which the story unfolds. That approach informed his research. Baldacci explains that the series in a unique time in history. Following World War II, America was changing quickly. He notes that people were tired of the Great Depression and fighting a war, and “looking for something better,” which is Archer’s goal. He’s seeking to “earn a living and do something interesting for whatever time he has left.”

A Gambling Man is another sophisticated, engrossing adventure through which readers learn more about and establish a deeper connection with Archer. Baldacci promises that Archer will be back in another installment set in 1953. Hopefully, Liberty will also return, and Baldacci will reveal how their relationship has enfolded during the ensuing years.