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Harold Dodge #1
Bird Dog
With more twists than an L.A. freeway, Philip Reed guides you on a lethal joyride you won't forget... Harold Dodge, pushing fifty, is a good man. But in a less-than-perfect world -- that is, Los Angeles -- good men sometimes have to do bad things. Just about everyone in the City of Angels has a hard luck story, but when it comes to bad breaks, Harold is rewriting the book.Now he's in a friend's car -- and in a spot. A pair of hired repo men in a stolen Buick are trying to run him off the freeway and into an early grave. But the cops pull him over first -- a blessing, except for one little thing. Harold's got a dead body in the trunk. That's when his luck takes a turn...for the worse.It all started because Harold has a weakness for killer legs. And when Marianna Perado in her spike heels asks him to help her "unwind" a rip-off deal at Joe Covo's dealership, where Harold once bird-dogged suckers into buying used cars, he jumps... and lands in a cesspool of corruption.Harold lives for women and cars -- he just never figured on dying for them. Now he has to add up a pack of lies and hope a scrap of truth comes out in the equation. But Harold lives in a city where everyone's working a hustle, where the only question is who's hustling you. The Santa Ana winds are blowing, and Harold Dodge is feeling the heat.
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
33 people want to read
About the author
Philip Reed
112 books7 followersPhilip Reed is a novelist, playwright and journalist who has been nominated for the top mystery award for his first book Bird Dog, which is currently under an option from Hollywood to be a feature film. He has also written three sports performance books including the popular golf memoir In Search of the Greatest Golf Swing. His other sports books are Free Throw, 7 Steps to Success at the Free Throw Line and Wild Cards, about learning to become a blackjack card counter. Philip has also worked in the automotive industry and went undercover as a car salesman to write the expose “Confessions of a Car Salesman.” Philip’s novels are Bird Dog and the sequel, Low Rider; The Marquis de Fraud, Off and Running and the young adult novel Ponga Boy. Working with the TV icon, he wrote Candidly, Allen Funt. He currently lives in Long Beach, California and enjoys playing tennis and golfing nearly anywhere. Born in the midwest and raised in New England, Philip also spent a year going to school in Oxford, England, where he played on the rugby and cricket teams. He was a poor student but his soccer playing ability got him into the University of North Carolina. Philip started his career as a police reporter in Chicago and Denver and then moved to California and became a playwright. His plays were staged in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago. He wrote one of the first episodes of "Miami Vice." His insider knowledge about car buying, and automotive information, has earned him many national radio and television appearances.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 10, 2015
Most of us have preconceptions of dealing with a car salesman and with "Bird Dog," the actions of one car salesman definitely takes a downward step.
Harold Dodge is familiar with the tricks of a car dealer. He has worked in that industry and written a book about it. although his present job is as an engineer.
He's an overweight man who has a problem with his image. However, he's flattered when a pretty co-worker named Marianna asks for his help. She purchased a car from a dealer and traded in her own car for it. After reading the contract and what was supposed to be included in the purchase price, she feels that she was taken advantage of. Now she wants to reverse the transaction.
When Harold and Marianna get to the return to the dealership, her car is no longer on the lot. The flashy salesman wonders is Harold might be an investigator from the DMV so is careful and asks them to let him research it and return again.
Marianne tries to finish the transaction and returns on her own to unwind the sale. However during this time, she unwittingly takes a document that would incriminate the man who runs the dealership.
During this time, the central office of the dealership sends representatives to examine the operation and take steps in removing the shady manager.
Reed describes the action well as the criminals vie for power and attempt to bluff their way out of the predicament This allows the reader to see the hypocrisy and conniving that goes on..
Harold's heart is won by Marianne and he puts himself in danger in working with the unscrupulous salesman.
The action at the auto dealership and the situations that the characters find themselves in reminded me of the writing of the great Elmore Leonard.
I was drawn to the story and seeing the action unfold even though I wasn't drawn to any of the characters.
Harold Dodge is familiar with the tricks of a car dealer. He has worked in that industry and written a book about it. although his present job is as an engineer.
He's an overweight man who has a problem with his image. However, he's flattered when a pretty co-worker named Marianna asks for his help. She purchased a car from a dealer and traded in her own car for it. After reading the contract and what was supposed to be included in the purchase price, she feels that she was taken advantage of. Now she wants to reverse the transaction.
When Harold and Marianna get to the return to the dealership, her car is no longer on the lot. The flashy salesman wonders is Harold might be an investigator from the DMV so is careful and asks them to let him research it and return again.
Marianne tries to finish the transaction and returns on her own to unwind the sale. However during this time, she unwittingly takes a document that would incriminate the man who runs the dealership.
During this time, the central office of the dealership sends representatives to examine the operation and take steps in removing the shady manager.
Reed describes the action well as the criminals vie for power and attempt to bluff their way out of the predicament This allows the reader to see the hypocrisy and conniving that goes on..
Harold's heart is won by Marianne and he puts himself in danger in working with the unscrupulous salesman.
The action at the auto dealership and the situations that the characters find themselves in reminded me of the writing of the great Elmore Leonard.
I was drawn to the story and seeing the action unfold even though I wasn't drawn to any of the characters.
May 23, 2021
According to Harold Dodge, the beer in Chile is so good, you can even drink it warm. Is it true? I don’t know, but part of me believes him. Can I find out? I suppose so, but you see, Harold Dodge isn’t even a real person.
Harold is the main character of Phil Reed’s first novel about a former “bird dog,” a person who brings potential buyers into a car dealership. He’s written a book about “How to Buy a Cream Puff,” so when Aerodyne co-worker Marianne Perado gets caught in a bad deal for a new Matsura in trade for her Ford Escort, she seeks out his help. Harold accompanies Marianne to Joe Covo’s car dealership, they meet with Vito, the salesman, and attempt to unwind the deal. Vito reveals that her car has already been sold, but Marianne perseveres, setting off a complex chain reaction of events that gather speed like a car with no brakes.
Accidents, guns, dead bodies, and mistaken identities follow. As complicated as this story becomes, I never lost track of which character was which. I never had to look back and say to myself “Now who was this?” Nor did I have to make myself a “cheat sheet” of what happened when. I found myself able to follow the storyline through with no hesitation or confusion. This is so very important in a mystery when the reader is following carefully organized clues placed by the writer and timed just so to reveal the whodunit of the entire story. Phil Reed does this splendidly.
Even the most minor character has dimension and depth. The hit man flown in from out of town to secure the missing black book brought his own story to tell that gave meaning and understanding to how he could beat another man to near death and live with his own conscience. Joe Covo’s wife wanted to be involved in her husband’s life so she read books on cars and eventually knew more about engines than the car salesmen did. These seemingly tiny details round out the personalities of each person in the book so that I felt like I had some insight into who they were and what they might feel or do as the story progressed. I need to care about the characters, good or bad, to keep my interest going and keep me flipping pages.
I read a mystery to be entertained and to try and make sense out of seemingly senseless acts or I try to organize clues into a pattern to solve a crime. I don’t want this to be easy for me nor do I want it to be so very difficult so as to frustrate me. Somehow Phil Reed has found the perfect balance in his writing that both tantalizes and taunts me.
Harold Dodge has only appeared in two books thus far: BIRD DOG and LOW RIDER. However, Phil Reed had gone on to write another novel entitled MARQUIS de FRAUD about the world of horse racing which is equally as enticing as BIRD DOG. I hope the future brings many more books from Phil Reed, an author who balances the elements of mystery flawlessly.
Harold is the main character of Phil Reed’s first novel about a former “bird dog,” a person who brings potential buyers into a car dealership. He’s written a book about “How to Buy a Cream Puff,” so when Aerodyne co-worker Marianne Perado gets caught in a bad deal for a new Matsura in trade for her Ford Escort, she seeks out his help. Harold accompanies Marianne to Joe Covo’s car dealership, they meet with Vito, the salesman, and attempt to unwind the deal. Vito reveals that her car has already been sold, but Marianne perseveres, setting off a complex chain reaction of events that gather speed like a car with no brakes.
Accidents, guns, dead bodies, and mistaken identities follow. As complicated as this story becomes, I never lost track of which character was which. I never had to look back and say to myself “Now who was this?” Nor did I have to make myself a “cheat sheet” of what happened when. I found myself able to follow the storyline through with no hesitation or confusion. This is so very important in a mystery when the reader is following carefully organized clues placed by the writer and timed just so to reveal the whodunit of the entire story. Phil Reed does this splendidly.
Even the most minor character has dimension and depth. The hit man flown in from out of town to secure the missing black book brought his own story to tell that gave meaning and understanding to how he could beat another man to near death and live with his own conscience. Joe Covo’s wife wanted to be involved in her husband’s life so she read books on cars and eventually knew more about engines than the car salesmen did. These seemingly tiny details round out the personalities of each person in the book so that I felt like I had some insight into who they were and what they might feel or do as the story progressed. I need to care about the characters, good or bad, to keep my interest going and keep me flipping pages.
I read a mystery to be entertained and to try and make sense out of seemingly senseless acts or I try to organize clues into a pattern to solve a crime. I don’t want this to be easy for me nor do I want it to be so very difficult so as to frustrate me. Somehow Phil Reed has found the perfect balance in his writing that both tantalizes and taunts me.
Harold Dodge has only appeared in two books thus far: BIRD DOG and LOW RIDER. However, Phil Reed had gone on to write another novel entitled MARQUIS de FRAUD about the world of horse racing which is equally as enticing as BIRD DOG. I hope the future brings many more books from Phil Reed, an author who balances the elements of mystery flawlessly.
August 3, 2021
A couple of weeks ago, I was browsing at Book Nook in Atlanta and saw a copy of Philip Reed’s Bird Dog. The novel was an Edgar Award nominee back in the 1990s, so I was excited to buy it. Last night, I finished it before bed - and it was even better than I had thought that it would be.
The plot is somewhat unpromising - a hard-luck guy in Los Angeles (Harold Dodge) agrees to help a young woman (Marianna) unwind an exploitative car deal. Dodge is a former car salesman who got fired from the dealership where Marianna got her raw deal. Predictably, Harold and Marianna stumble into some sinister business.
Bird Dog is an often-terrific novel. Reed tells the story from multiple points of view and does a great job of making each character come alive. Harold’s a bit of a sap, which can grate on the reader at times. But readers will still cheer for him.
Reed is down on Los Angeles. He has the usual complains - traffic, pollution, materialism, etc. Harold yearns for escape to somewhere simpler.
Bird Dog also has some great humor. The reviews on my copy compare Bird Dog with Carl Hiassen’s novels. But I’ve never been a huge Hiassen fan, and I think that Bird Dog is better than are Hiassen’s books because Bird Dog’s characters are more believable, and engage in fewer slapstick antics.
There are a few discordant notes. First, Reed unsuccessfully weaves in a backstory involving Marianna fleeing death squads in her native Guatemala. Also, Harold has a second love interest - a stripper - and this plot thread is left unresolved. Finally, the ending of the book is a bit predictable.
But I will definitely read the second novel in the series (Low Ryder). Bird Dog was a very-pleasant, very-entertaining surprise.
The plot is somewhat unpromising - a hard-luck guy in Los Angeles (Harold Dodge) agrees to help a young woman (Marianna) unwind an exploitative car deal. Dodge is a former car salesman who got fired from the dealership where Marianna got her raw deal. Predictably, Harold and Marianna stumble into some sinister business.
Bird Dog is an often-terrific novel. Reed tells the story from multiple points of view and does a great job of making each character come alive. Harold’s a bit of a sap, which can grate on the reader at times. But readers will still cheer for him.
Reed is down on Los Angeles. He has the usual complains - traffic, pollution, materialism, etc. Harold yearns for escape to somewhere simpler.
Bird Dog also has some great humor. The reviews on my copy compare Bird Dog with Carl Hiassen’s novels. But I’ve never been a huge Hiassen fan, and I think that Bird Dog is better than are Hiassen’s books because Bird Dog’s characters are more believable, and engage in fewer slapstick antics.
There are a few discordant notes. First, Reed unsuccessfully weaves in a backstory involving Marianna fleeing death squads in her native Guatemala. Also, Harold has a second love interest - a stripper - and this plot thread is left unresolved. Finally, the ending of the book is a bit predictable.
But I will definitely read the second novel in the series (Low Ryder). Bird Dog was a very-pleasant, very-entertaining surprise.
January 27, 2018
A vulnerable ex-used car salesman, the author of a book on “bird-dogging” or how to buy a used car and not get scammed, is involved by a beautiful co-worker in the aftermath of a murder, the result of her wanting to get her trade-in back, in an LA in which everyone seems to be a hustler. This novel has suitably exaggerated if clichéd characters and some funny moments, unfortunately often a bit forced. An engaging, if unremarkable, story.
May 3, 2014
Bird Dog is billed as ‘car noir’. It certainly revolves around the car industry, but is probably better described as a screwball noir -- a comic crime caper mixed with a hardboiled tale of swindles, white collar crime, strippers and prostitution, and violence, with a colourful cast of characters. Think Carl Hiaasen, Elmore Leonard, Joe Lansdale, Janet Evanovich, for a comparison in style and substance. It works remarkably well, with the story moving at a quick pace, with plenty of twists and turns, as the three main characters each up the ante. In so doing, each makes a continued series of miscalculations, in turn making their position worse and forcing them to continue on their path. And once they are ensnared in the mayhem, there’s no real way out other than to let it unwind to its inevitable bloody conclusion. As with all screwball noirs the story is a little forced at times, but that's usually what makes them fun, and Reed manages to teeter along the high wire of farce, in the main because it's easy to imagine car dealerships to be as portrayed and the strength of characterisation. Harold is a regular guy who’s naturally economical with the truth. Marianne, an immigrant from Guatemala, is determined to not to be scammed. Vito is a snake oil charmer who’s prepared to stick to his guns. And they are surrounded by a mix of memorable others -- Kim, a stripper with a soft spot for Harold, hardnosed cops, a sneaky boss with the body beautiful wife, a couple of head office hard asses, and Harold’s brother and his loser friends who are making his father’s life a misery. Overall, noir meets black humour leading to an original and entertaining read.
February 26, 2011
I bought this book on clearance for .49. This book was much better than I was expecting.
May 2, 2017
Has a great hard-boiled taste to it, but the plot of this novel never quite snagged me in. All about double-crossing car dealers in urban L.A. Takes place in the Nineties and seems dated now. The protagonist is the typically tough, tender and flawed, and his romance with his spunky secretary is the best thing in the book.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews