Frames, Loren D. Estleman
Frames, Loren D. Estleman
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Frames
A Valentino Mystery

Author: Loren D. Estleman

Narrator: William Dufris

Unabridged: 6 hr 1 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 05/01/2008

Synopsis

Enter Valentino, a mild-mannered UCLA film archivist, buys a decrepit movie palace and uncovers a skeleton in the secret Prohibition basement. He then makes a second discovery: long-lost, priceless, reels of film: Erich von Stroheim's infamous Greed. The Los Angeles Police Department wants to take the reels as evidence, jeopardizing the precious old film. If Valentino wants to save his find, he has only one choice: solve the murder within seventy-two hours, with the help of his mentor, the noted film scholar Broadhead, and Fanta, a feisty if slightly flaky young law student. Between a budding romance with a beautiful forensics investigator and visions of Von Stroheim's ghost, Valentino's madcap race to save the flick is as fast and frenetic as a classic screwball comedy.

About Loren D. Estleman

Loren D. Estleman is an award-winning author of mainstream fiction, Westerns, criticism, and mysteries. He has written more than eighty novels, including in the Amos Walker, Page Murdock, and Peter Macklin series. He is the winner of four Shamus Awards, five Spur Awards, three Western Heritage Awards, a Barry Award, the Elmer Kelton Award, two Stirrup Awards, and a Popular Fiction Magazine Outstanding Writer Award. He has received lifetime achievement awards from the Western Writers of America, the Private Eye Writers of America, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and the Arts Alliance of Ann Arbor, Michigan.

About William Dufris

William Dufris attended the University of Southern Maine in Portland-Gorham before pursuing a career in voice work in London and then the United States. He has won more than twenty AudioFile Earphones Awards, was voted one of the Best Voices at the End of the Century by AudioFile magazine, and won the prestigious Audie Award in 2012 for best nonfiction narration. He lives with his family in Maine.

Reviews

Goodreads review by James

I've long been a fan of Loren Estleman's long-running Amos Walker series. Set in Detroit, it's one of my favorite hard-boiled detective series. In Frames, Estleman shifts gears pretty dramatically, moving the setting to L.A. and introducing a new protagonist named Valentino. Valentino, who does not......more

Goodreads review by Jim

This was a fun, light mystery full of old Hollywood references as 'film detective' aka film archivist Val buys an old iconic movie palace & makes the find of his career. Unfortunately, he has an actual skeleton in the closet & that prompts an investigation that threatens the film. That's a bit of a......more

Goodreads review by Anita

Valentino is a film detective who works for the film preservation group at UCLA. He purchases an old movie house and discovers 24 reels of what might be Erich Von Stroheims missing masterpiece as well as a skeleton. I listened to the audiobook. It was full of amusing characters and some of the dialo......more

Goodreads review by Patricia

A great premise, lots of interesting Hollywood facts and a lot of smack talk. The mystery felt like it was just sprinkled lightly over all that until the end when it just solved and continued with facts and romance. The Closing Credits were especially good.......more

Goodreads review by Rachel

A delightful book, charming and playful. I will read more of this series.......more

Quotes

“Prolific four-time Shamus Award winner Estleman has scripted yet another wacky comedic mystery that begs to become a feature film. His snappy dialog, feisty characters, Hollywood lore, and gentle romance make this his funniest to date.” Library Journal

“As Valentino and his buddies careen about Los Angeles, visiting a home for retired movie workers and researching the provenance of the movie palace, Estleman smoothly seeds the text with all manner of fascinating details relating to the history of silent films and the techniques of modern film restoration. There’s even time for a nifty romance between Valentino and an LAPD forensics investigator. Great cast, great subject, flawless delivery from a real pro.” Booklist (starred review)

“While the lighthearted tone is far removed from the gritty realism of the author’s Amos Walker series the versatile Estleman has crafted yet another intelligent page-turner.” Publishers Weekly

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