Amazon.com G.M. Ford's fifth book about Seattle private detective Leo Waterman begins with a backyard jolt: the Boys (a group of ancient alcoholics who Leo looks after) dig up the 30-year-old remains of a gay-bashing right-wing newspaper columnist named Peerless Price while doing some work on the grounds of the mansion belonging to Leo's late father， politician Wild Bill Waterman. It looks very much as though Wild Bill did indeed shoot and bury his arch enemy. And precisely because both a starchy relative and the entire Seattle PD warn him against it， Leo proceeds to risk life， limb， and his ancient Fiat convertible to prove his father's innocence. What he finds out--from Wild Bill's old driver， an ex-cop called Bermuda Schwartz， and other assorted ghosts from the past--provides a wild and often touching story that combines recent headlines (about the smuggling of Chinese immigrants) with moments of personal pain. That same combination is present in Ford's other books about Waterman: Slow Burn， Who in Hell Is Wanda Fuca?， The Bum's Rush， and Cast in Stone. --Dick Adler From Publishers Weekly It's hard work trying to keep a series fresh， and in Ford's fifth novel about Seattle private detective Leo Waterman (Slow Burn， etc.) the strain shows. Most of the recurring jokes?about Leo's powerful family and their embarrassment about his work， about his dysfunctional Fiat and his animosity toward the police department?fall flat. Even the Boys， the band of homeless drunks Waterman supports and employs from time to time， aren't quite as engaging anymore. When the 30-year-old remains of a gay-bashing， right-wing newspaper columnist named Peerless Price turn up on the grounds of the mansion belonging to Leo's late father， politician Wild Bill Waterman， it begins to look as if Wild Bill had shot his arch enemy. Because both his starchy uncle Pat and the Seattle PD warn him against it， Leo risks life， limb and ancient convertible to prove his father's innocence. What he finds out?from Wild Bill's old driver and other ghosts from the past (including an earless Oriental phantom straight out of Sax Rohmer; see the review of The Revenge of Kali-Ra， below)?proves more bizarre than exciting. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information， Inc. See all Editorial Reviews