Little Black Dress

Peter Macklin #5

by Loren D. Estleman

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A HIT MAN MEETS HIS NEW MOTHER-IN-LAW?

Multiple Shamus Award winner Loren D. Estleman is "a superb stylist as well as a deft storyteller [who] paints his people and his city with acerbic wit and wry affection" (San Diego Union-Tribune). Peter Macklin was a hit man for a long time but he has taken steps to distance himself from his tattooed past, like quitting the mob, moving away from Detroit, and marrying the gorgeous, intelligent Laurie. But retirement isn't easy for an ex-hit man.

Now the man accustomed to killing people in cold blood must adjust to a sadistic ritual of early marriage... he must spend time with his eccentric mother-in-law. This event takes an unexpected turn when Macklin discovers mom-in-law's boyfriend Benjamin Grinnell is a spotter for a gang of armed robbers. Unfortunately, Grinnell made a big mistake: he failed to spot a shotgun-toting shop-owner, whom the gang had to turn into red mist. Now Grinnell's life is threatened, and Grinnell's jeopardy endangers his sweetie... and Laurie.

Macklin, driven by his professional curiosity and his desire to protect his family, can't help but get involved. As Macklin investigates Grinnell's dark affairs, he inevitably gets tangled up with Grinnell's enemies, including the Ohio mob... and the law. All parties converge in a deadly shootout, with the lives of Macklin's loved ones and the fate of his marriage precariously hanging in the balance.

Genres: Thriller

235 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2004

About the author

Loren D. Estleman is an American writer of detective and Western fiction. He writes with a manual typewriter.

Estleman is most famous for his novels about P.I. Amos Walker. Other series characters include Old West marshal Page Murdock and hitman Peter Macklin. He has also written a series of novels about the history of crime in Detroit (also the setting of his Walker books.) His non-series works include Bloody Season, a fictional recreation of the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, and several novels and stories featuring Sherlock Holmes.

Series:
* Amos Walker Mystery
* Valentino Mystery
* Detroit Crime Mystery
* Peter Macklin Mystery
* Page Murdock Mystery

Reviews

[Eric_W]

Peter Macklin, Estleman's hitman creation, in this fifth of the series, has married and his Laurie, his wife knows about his previous life. Laurie’s mother, a bitchy bookstore owner has taken up with Ben Grinnell who unbeknownst to her also comes from the mobster side of life.

"How'd you meet, in the bookstore?" Laurie sipped her iced tea-the Midwestern variety, without alcohol. She and Macklin had agreed beforehand to stay sober. "No, he picked me up in a bar." Macklin got directions and went into the kitchen for napkins to clean up Laurie's spill. He came hack during the explanation. "-to see your face. It was worth it. I was sitting with friends in the lounge at Banbury Cross; that's the golf course that went in after Otto Pederson sold his hundred and sixty acres and moved to California. Marvelous scene.

Peter is trying to retire having ostensibly sold a chain of camera stores but after meeting Grinnell, realizes something is weird with the guy and does a little research. Grinnell in the meantime has been casing joints for some mobsters who have been knocking off video stores. One of these having gone bad they decided to focus on bookstores as places for some ready cash (instantly dating this book.) And guess which bookstore is next on their list?

Peter may remind some readers of Richard Stark’s Parker and there are similarities. Both have an amoral cynicism and distrust for the motives of others. Both have now been “saddled” with the complications and responsibilities of a wife (an encumbrance.) Estleman adds a further ingredient to the mix in this book in the character of Grinnell who also discovers that trying to leave the life can be deadly.

Hard to beat Eastleman for solid dialogue and entertainment.

[James S.]

For a book supposedly about a hit man and the mafia, this is amazingly dull stuff. There is a huge amount of filler: Macklin's relationship with Laura, with his mother-in-law, with his mother-in-law's boyfriend, on and on and on. There was no compelling story driving things. Not recommended.

[Ally McWilliams]

I got 78 percent threw it and couldn’t finish it

[Rog Harrison]

"Loren D Estleman is a great writer and this book features Peter Macklin, a killer who has now retired and married. However events happen and Macklin gets sucked into a situation he can't control. Needless to say there is an unhappy ending." was what I wrote on 11 May 2013.

There are some interesting characters in this book and at the end I felt sorry for Macklin as he really was trying to make a fresh start. This is the fifth book featuring Macklin and I wonder if there will be any more.

[Richard]

Snappy dialogue with clever, contemporary references. Good summer reading, hell, probably good winter reading too. I'm just getting into it but the characters are sharply drawn, compelling and witty. This is the first book by Estleman I've read but he appears to be living up to the expectations that resulted in winning most of the awards given totop mystery writers. LBD reads like the dialogue from Michael Mann's "Heat" - a top ten boy movie if you haven't seen it.

[Dick]

Finally read this last book in the series and finished it today. It was written in 2005 and it is now 2014 and there has been no sequel written, nor can I find any indication of Loren Estleman to do so.

This book weaves a good read, but I would advise against taking the time to read it as it leaves the reader hanging with no definitive end - leads you to believe a sequel is forthcoming. Better not to waste your time.

[Ed]

#5 in the Peter Macklin series.

Peter Macklin, retired hitman, and his new bride intend to settle down in her small home town. Macklin meets his mother-in-law's boyfriend and suspects he has something to hide but doesn't know that the boyfriend is the case man for a crew of armed robbers whose next target is the bookstore his girlfriend manages.

[Tom]

OK, not as good as the first 3 Macklin novels, but better than the first Macklin "comeback" book.

[James Tuck]

It was pretty good. Very deftly told, never heavy handed, just a light breeze of a book. Nice and refreshing.

[Jim Hunter]

Meh this being number 5 I am spared reading the first 4 or the next whatever