Lost River
(Valentin St. Cyr Storyville Mystery #4)
It’s autumn of 1913 and Valentin St. Cyr has been absent from his Storyville stomping grounds for some months, trying to make it as a “legitimate” detective and with his longtime love, Justine. But then a certain important gentleman is found dead in a district brothel and the madam immediately turns to the Creole detective for help. At first he refuses to be drawn back in, but when several more bodies turn up around the District, he relents and comes to the aid of the place—and the people—that he protected for so many years.
Just as he is about to settle the case, he realizes that someone has been playing him all along. Indeed, the police captain who has been his long-time nemesis believes there’s evidence that the detective himself could be guilty of murder. The trouble is so fraught that he’s forced into hiding; at the same moment, Justine seems to be turning her back on him and dallying with a handsome young fellow from a wealthy family. But is she being lured into a trap, too?
Taking us back to the acclaimed and much-loved Storyville series, Lost River marks a raw-edged return to the bloody streets of early-1900s New Orleans.
Praise
“Fulmer is both a fine plotter and a marvelously evocative writer with an eye for character.”
—The Washington Post Book World
“David Fulmer’s evocative prose captures the sights, sounds, and smells of 1913 Storyville in his superior Lost River.”
—USA Today
“The atmosphere Fulmer creates is rich, nuanced, and authentic.”
—Minneapolis Star-Tribune
“Valentin’s fourth case immediately draws the reader into its tapestry of the Big Easy in a memorable bygone era.”
—Kirkus Reviews
“With his usual lucid prose, Fulmer details the grubby ‘crib’ life that exploited scores of women prostitutes while padding rich men’s wallets. Those looking for some jazzy early 20th-century chills won’t be disappointed.”
— Publishers Weekly
“Fulmer’s feel for atmosphere and his increasingly subtle hand with character development keep the series from going stale.... Early on, this series’ main appeal was its setting, but now it can hold its own with the most character-driven of historical mysteries.”
—Booklist
“Fans of hard-boiled writers like Raymond Chandler, Bill Pronzini, and James Lee Burke will enjoy Shamus Award winner Fulmer’s latest. Highly recommended.”
—Library Journal
“The richness of Fulmer's integration of emotional, criminal and historical elements makes his mystery writing as compelling and original as the best in detective fiction. St. Cyr takes his place alongside Harry Bosch and Dave Robicheaux: gripping, visceral, and above all, human.”
—The Critical Mystery Tour
Lost River is published by Crescent City Books.