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Title: The Green Pearl Caper

Subtitle: Damien Dickens Mysteries, Book 1

Author: Phyllis Entis

Narrator: Tom Lennon

Format: Unabridged

Length: 7 hrs and 30 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-25-16

Publisher: Quintzy Press

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 31 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Modern Detective

Publisher's Summary:

Celine Sutherland is dead - her body half-hidden under the Atlantic City Boardwalk - and Damien Dickens, P.I. killed her. Detective Lt. James Holmes found Damien's gun and wallet near the crime scene, and discovered Celine's cash-filled, emerald-studded evening bag hidden in Damien's apartment. Sylvia Sutherland, Celine's older sister and CEO of the family's tobacco empire, insists that Dickens pulled the trigger. And the Sutherlands carry a lot of influence in Atlantic City. Even Damien's secretary has deserted him - gone to work for the Sutherlands. Only Celine's younger sister, Susan, believes in his innocence.

After Susan bails him out of jail, Damien follows his gut and a series of clues in order to clear his name. His quest takes him to several Atlantic City landmarks, inland to Everettville, a small New Jersey town, and north to Vermont, where he confronts Celine's killer.

The Green Pearl Caper, set in the summer of 1979, is the first in a series of Damien Dickens mysteries.

Members Reviews:

Book 1

What did you like best about this story?

The Green Pearl Caper provided an intriguing and suspenseful mystery. The readers / listeners of the audiobook soon find themselves smack in the front office of a modest detective agency where they are introduced to Damien and his trusty receptionist, Millie. And so the mystery begins. It is a very entertaining story and a good narration.

Nice Throwback Piece

This takes us back to the New Jersey and New York of the 70s, which was a time of bell bottoms, disco music, pay phones, and platform shoesbut not for the conservative heirs of a tobacco conglomerate. This crew is all kerchiefs and pearls and murder. Following Detective Damien Dickens through boardwalk knockouts; rubbish burials (his own); pawnshop prowls; and the ire of his long time enemies made this listen fun adventure and conjured more than a little worry over the doomed detective. As Dickenss enemies gloat over his misfortune, he steadily mounts clues and garners support from his extremely limited resources. The plot is enriched with a cast of very suspicious antagonists, all of whom have motive to kill. The story definitely kept me guessing as the pendulum swung from hilarity to horror to hope. The real enjoyment is in details I dare not share lest I spoil your fun. My only prickly note is that sometimes the feel of time is closer to the 1940s than the 70s, which is detectable in both in the dialogue and the narration.

The narration is carried out consistently well. Tom Lennon makes me believe hes telling the story. His cadence and clarity are spot on. In my opinion Lennon's tone, as well as the story's dialogues, may be more indicative of an earlier decade than the 70s. This was a bit distracting until I told myself to allow the story to exist "whenever." Once that was done, I was able to relax and enjoy this rather timeless narrative.

A fun detective novel

I thought this was a good start to a series, and perfect for fans of detective stories. The setting is interesting, as it takes place in 1970's Atlantic City. I think it is well-written, easy to read, has good characters, and keeps you guessing who the culprit is. In the book, they reference earlier cases that Damien and Millie worked together, which made me want to know more details.