Alone

Alone
by Loren Estleman

Valentino is a UCLA film archivist who's job it is to recover long-lost movies for the university. Of course his quest leads to mysteries and people associated with the Hollywood of old, thus providing an interesting connection between the old and the new. This story places him in a modern day murder involving the now deceased Greta Garbo. Valentino balances his sleuthing with supervising the renovation of The Oracle, a dilapidated movie theater. He has to keep the workers painting and plastering while dealing with a corrupt building inspector. I learned a lot about the early days of the talking movies and about Greta Garbo. Did you know that her first film was a promotional piece for a department store in Sweden called How Not to Dress? I didn't. Lovers of the silver screen will enjoy the trivia about legendary and little known screen stars. [If you like this one, you may also enjoy The Baker Street Letters and books by Dianne Emley.] -- recommended by Donna G. - Virtual Services Department
[ official Valentino mystery series page on the official Loren Estleman web site ]

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