For Whom the Curtain Calls

Reader's Favorite - 5-Star Award 2011

Discovering how a once-ornery theater worker became a crispy corpse with a missing arm ranks on Denton Rourke's, "Things I'd love to do," slightly below having his wisdom teeth removed with a shovel.

But when Denton is offered actual money to assist, the community college teacher by day and amateur detective by whenever it suits him agrees to investigate the scene of the crime: an again yet historic concert venue.

Surprisingly, Denton's first major case doesn't spin out of control for almost an entire afternoon. Then a powerful talent manager insists on an overly rapid resolution so his legendary band can play the theater without the minor inconvenience of being killed, and a pair of obtuse thugs with their own agenda stop by for a visit.

And to ensure complete chaos, Denton's long-time and very fantastic girlfriend wrinkles his personal life by reaching her limit on giving affection to an emotional klutz with the romantic instincts of a frozen waffle.

As the body count rises, the loveable yet infuriating sleuth must control his mercurial demenaor and acerbic tongue as he evades inept goons, outwits home appliances, frees large, cranky birds, and tries to stop a madman's unthinkable scheme. And if he has time (and isn't dead), Denton Rourke must convince the love of his life that he really is worth the effort. Which task will prove more impossible is anyone's guess.