Buried Caesars

Gen. Douglas MacArthur enlists the help of a discreet private detective in one of the sprightliest of the [Toby Peters] series (Time).   It's September 1942, and Gen. Douglas MacArthur believes he's got what it takes to win the war in the Pacific—but he's got a personal problem to take care of first. An aide has run off with his war chest, his donor list, and a handful of embarrassing private letters: a haul that would make the general a perfect target for blackmail and derail the post-war presidential run he's planning. This is one battle he can't afford to lose.   So the general enlists Det. Toby Peters, who has built a reputation for discretion among Hollywood's elite, not to mention the White House. Forming a surprising alliance with former Pinkerton agent and legendary crime novelist, Dashiell Hammett, Peters follows the trail to Angel Springs, California, and a mysterious millionaire who's definitely no angel. In protecting the general from blackmail, Peters hopes to avoid paying the ultimate price himself.   Edgar Award winner Stuart M. Kaminsky has a delightfully original mind enriching—rather than just borrowing from—an old literary form (Los Angeles Times).