Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

Superlative Series..
The twelfth Stewart Hoag mystery finds our ghostwriter sleuth and his faithful hound making a dangerous and perhaps deadly enemy. Seeking relaxation and a change of scenery may not have been his best decision to date, but coming out the other end he determines to do. A mystery with a clever, sharp edge, enchanting dialogue and a wholly engaging plot. A worthy addition to a superlative series.

Author Stewart Hoag (Hoagy) has finally hit his stride on his second novel. But, he’s at a pivotal point and decides to take a break. Leaving New York City, he heads to his ex-wife’s farmhouse in Connecticut with his faithful basset house, LuLu, in tow. Little do they know that they are stepping into a strange mystery that could cost Hoagy his life.

It’s been awhile since I’ve read a book by this author and it was fun to be reintroduced to his witty writing, great characters, and snappy dialogue. The plot is good and the story moves right along to a satisfactory conclusion. What is the sign of a good book for me? When I’m looking forward to reading another book by the author. David Handler’s The Man Who Wasn’t All There fits the bill.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book for review.

Stewart “Hoagy” Hoag, seeking a change of scenery as he writes a novel, heads to his movie star ex-wife’s Connecticut farmhouse. His only companion is Lulu, his faithful basset hound with a taste for anchovies. Of course, the solitude isn’t destined to last, as shortly after arriving Hoagy is accosted by a mentally unstable guy waving a gun around and impersonating a law enforcement officer. Despite terrorizing may of the locals, this person is granted unusual latitude by the police because he turns out to be a billionaire. It’s a recipe for grudges, giving us no shortage of suspects when the inevitable happens. Hoagy has a smart-alecky way of interacting with the other characters that is funny, as opposed to annoying, because he is obviously a good guy. This makes for snappy dialogue reminiscent of the work of Robert B. Parker, and Hoagy’s matter-of-fact competence with household repairs like window glazing adds to his Spenser-ish vibe. It’s fun to watch him investigate the murders with the grudging acceptance of the local police, who know they can use the help.

The book scan be read as a standalone, and it took me a while to realize that the character identities felt too established--and the writing too assured--for this to be a first novel. In fact, it’s the 12th in a series; I feel silly for not having noticed this but also delighted to have 11 more of these to read right away.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a digital advance review copy.

This is one of those books you read and then you think "Why did I never heard about this series?" and then you go and look for the rest of the series.
I loved this stories, it's a gripping thriller and I had a lot of fun in reading it as there's plenty of humor and you cannot help loving Lulu (great dog) and liking Hoagy (love smart-ass characters).
The plot is tightly knitted, fast paced and full of twists and turns.
The characters are fleshed out, well thought and interesting.
I loved the historical background as it is vivid and takes you back in time.
I can't wait to read the next installment, I will surely read the previous novels.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

After a long rough spell, personally and professionally, Stewart Hoag is back. His writer’s block has finally broken while staying in the opulent Central Park apartment lent him by his ex-wife, movie star Merilee Nash, who is on location in Budapest. It’s not just his career as a novelist that has taken a turn for the better: the love he and Merilee shared has been rekindled. After several productive months in New York City, Stewart and his constant companion, Lulu the basset hound, head to Merilee’s farm near Lyme, Connecticut for a change of scene.
Stewart plans to have a peaceful respite in the country, but shortly after settling in his privacy is invaded by a slovenly, hygienically challenged man in an ersatz state police uniform, driving a battered Crown Royal. He demands to see Merilee, and refuses to believe that she’s not there. After making a vague threat, he takes off. Minutes later he has another visitor, Merilee’s neighbor, checking to be sure he’s okay after his visit from the eccentric and volatile Austin Talmadge. Talmadge, recently released from a psychiatric institution, is the second richest person in Connecticut. His brother Michael is the richest, and is a personal friend of the governor, so the law has to handle him with kid gloves.
When Austin is brutally murdered, there is no shortage of suspects. As a child, he’d shot Michael in the face with a bb gun, and killed his cousins’ dog. He bullied another cousin so relentlessly that she finally took her own life. While impersonating a policeman, he’d hassled many of his neighbors. Even Stewart has a motive, after Austin put him and Lulu in peril. He’s quickly cleared, and is able to help the authorities solve the crime.
Stewart is smart and resourceful, and it doesn’t take long for him to identify the culprit. He’s also eccentric and marches to his own drummer, which would explain the unique way in which he gets the suspect to confess. Merilee might not approve, but it gets the job done.
Hoag is a complex and engaging protagonist, and Merilee is his equal in likability and eccentricity. Together they are a force to be reckoned with, and this reader looks forward to their future adventures. Highly recommended.

It's 1993 and Hoagy just wants to finish writing his novel. He's living in his ex-wife Merilee's house while she's off making a movie and all seems to be going well until Austin, her neighbor shows up. Turns out Austin is mentally ill and dangerous- and he kidnaps both Hoagy and his loyal dog Lulu. Those two manage to escape his clutches (with some injuries) but .....they find Austin's body. Who killed him? Well, Merilee comes home to help Hoagy, Lulu, and Lieutenant Tedrone of the State Police solve the crime. This is not their first investigation- they've got what seems to me to be a good routine. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Some twists and humor along with the characters made this an entertaining read.

David Handler's novels continue to delight me. They are stylish, funny, satirical, with razor-sharp dialogue and gripping plots. The Stewart Hoag and Lulu series is just about the most enjoyable American crime novel series currently being written.
Hoagy is a great character, full of wit and sometimes wisdom, and Lulu really has got to be the best heroine in print today. You only have to read one of these novels to be hooked for life.

unlike any I've read before because of the author's voice.interesting plot and believable characters are brought to life by wonderfully tight writing with smart humor. I'm so happy to have found a new favorite author! Along with Kellerman, Rosenfelt, DeMille, Carr, Baldacci and others he joins a group with varied, unique voices in my go to list for this genre
Thank you netgalley and the publisher for this arc

Two incredibly wealthy brothers, one insane and dangerous (because you know that's the function of mental illness in mysteries) and the other terrified of his brother. An amateur sleuth who interrogates suspects and is tolerated, even reluctantly encouraged by the police who are dimmer than the amateur sleuth. A basset hound who attends the interrogations and comments in a cute doggie way. Dialogue that is sometimes snappy and sometimes just makes the protagonist seem highly irritating.

Apparently this isn't my kind of book, given the praise other readers have for it. I had trouble getting into it and set it aside. Picked it up again and began to enjoy it mildly, thinking it would be a solid three-star book. Then the ending ... well, to me it was sloppy and cliched and dreadful. And a disappointment as I have previously enjoyed the author's work, though this is the first I've read in this series. Sorry for the grumpy review, but I really felt highly annoyed by the end.

This is the first time that I experienced the emotions of like and dislike of a book throughout its’ reading. When I am reading a total fiction book, I want to be “lost in an alternative reality” and not be reminded of today’s problems.

I have never read any of David Handier’s books so I do not know if his character, Stewart Hoag, is so quirky and cocky about the crucial events taking place. After completing the book, I re-evaluated the book and to my amazement, I saw his humor in everything that I missed before. He does have an odd and intriguing method of adding humor to his story. Despite the expected ending in this book, I am open to reading his next book to see what is “normal” for him.

Thanks to Netgalley and Severn House for this e ARC.

A thoroughly enjoyable mystery with a central character who is entertaining, witty, skilled as a detective and reading people, and master of the one-liner. The book is a part cozy, part police procedural, and part detective fiction and totally in a category by itself. It's the kind of book reader's won't want to put down, so make sure you carve out some time before you start reading.
It is the twelfth in a series, but there is no need to have read the previous books to understand the mystery. There are some references to relationships from earlier books, but they are not critical to this book and the readers understanding is sufficient from Handler's explanations.
In this novel, Hoagy, the central character has gone to spend time at his ex-wife's Connecticut home, at her invitation. After a few years of writer's block, he is experiencing writing success again, and wants some uninterrupted time to think about what he refers to as a "third level" of his current work. He is convinced there is something more than he has written, it simply hasn't revealed itself.
Soon after his arrival, he crosses paths with a psychopath who is looking for Hoagy's ex-wife, believing she can help him because she once played a counselor in a film. Hoagy doesn't take the man seriously until a neighbor, the state troopers, and an envoy from the governor descend upon him to explain just how dangerous the man can be.
Things progress, the psychopath kidnaps Hoagy and his guard dog, Lulu. They are successful in escaping, then discover the murdered body of the psychopath and Hoagy's investigation begins, along with interaction with his ex-wife who hurries home from filming in Budapest, conversations with the lead state trooper, and various other characters. These conversations, and Hoagy's quick wit serve to make elevate the book from just a detective story to one of good detection immersed in enjoyable prose. A review of this novel is scheduled to appear in the on-line magazine https://www.mysteryandsuspense.com/. A link will be posted when it is scheduling is confirmed.

This is the twelfth adventure in the long running Stewart Hoag and Lulu (the basset hound) mystery series and is hugely entertaining. Set in the 1990's, "Hoagy" is having writer's block with his new novel and his movie star ex-wife offers him her rural farmhouse up in Connecticut whilst she is away filming in Europe. This is small town America, everyone knows or is related to everyone, and the police are slightly out of their depth when tragedy strikes not once but twice. The interplay between the characters is hugely entertaining, the dialog and repartee crackles, and the sleuthing isn't bad. It's not a thriller, and it's a bit more than a cozy - with its cast of larger than life characters, oddballs amongst them, it reminds me of an American version of Mike Ripley's continuation of Margery Allingham's Albert Campion series, and that's high praise. One of the best books, of its kind, of the year thus far. And it will take something really good to better it for page-turning entertainment. The type of mystery you read in one go late into the night.

The Talmadge brothers are the richest men in Connecticut... and the craziest.

When Fitzgerald-wannabe Stewart Hoag, experiencing his first creative streak in a decade, runs into the younger brother impersonating an officer and desperately seeking Hoagy's actress ex-wife, he calls in the cops. But as with the previous 11 books in this series, Hoagy winds up solving the case himself.

David Handler writes in bold colored pictures that bring his stories to life. Witness his ex-wife's green eyes, his fascination with his own wardrobe and bassett hound Lulu's appetite. The three have remained a team through the divorce, Hoagy's lean years as a ghostwriter and currently, as he enjoys his ex-wife's returning affection and willingness to share her wealth.

Remember Lawrence Sanders' Archy McNally? He and Hoagy would have been best friends.

Hoagy gets involved in a triple homicide when trying to help a friend find the missing manuscript he ghosted for a famous author. While Hoagy is out trying to find the manuscript, his friend is pushed from the top floor of his building. The authors daughter is next and then the author’s wife’s lawyer. Is it all because of the missing manuscript or is it money?
Goodreads

This is book number twelve in the Stewart "Hoagy" Hoag (and Lulu) book series. It can be read as a standalone but some of the magic is lost if you haven't read any of the previous books.

Once upon a time The New York Times Sunday Book Review declared author Stewart "Hoagy" Hoag 'the first major new literary voice of the 1980s', he was the toast of the town, he married an up and coming actress and together they became the new young "it" couple of the moment. And then... Nothing. A case of writer's block sent Hoagy into a tailspin that ended his marriage and exiled him into the world of ghostwriting celebrity memoirs. Along the way he and his faithful Bassett hound, Lulu, stumbled into one murder case after another.

Now it's 1993 and Hoagy has got his groove back. He's working on a new novel, he and his movie star ex-wife are flirting with reconciliation and, once again, he and Lulu somehow manage to stumble right smack into another murder.

This is a fun series. It's more of a cozy mystery than anything else but it has some biting humor and lacks the usual saccharin sweetness of the typical cozy. There is even some joking reference to all the murders Hoagy manages to get involved in (and solve).

Alas, the new improved, getting his life together Hoagy is missing something that was so endearing about the barely getting by, forced to work with fools and idiots Hoagy. He's now one of "them". He's not struggling anymore and it makes him a little less sympathetic and a lot more annoying. I'm not sure if I would have become such a big fan of the series if this was the first one of the books I had read.

It's okay. It's actually pretty good, but it doesn't really come alive in the fun way that most of the previous books have (I've missed a couple of the more recent ones). Where the others were unique twists on a more or less classic (often tired) genre this one tends to be more of a formula effort. I won't give up on Hoagy just yet, I've become quite attached to him since the first book, but my expectations will be slightly lowered with the next one.

If you're looking for something a little different but not too dark or twisted then you might enjoy The Man Who Wasn't All There by David Handler. Three and a half stars bumped up to four.

I'd give this book a PG rating. There is some mild sexual content and one or two four letter words.

***I received a free digital copy of this title through NetGalley.

It’s been years since I read a David Handler novel and was thrilled to find that he’s still writing about Stewart Hoag and Lulu. Reading this was like having a drink with an old friend. The writing is smooth and witty, the characters colorful, cool, and deceptive, and the overall story a cracking good mystery.

My only issue with this is the juxtaposition of severe mental illness and tremendous privilege, which generally infuriates me when I encounter it. There’s no escaping it in this book, though, as it is the crank that turns the wheel. Despite this, I did enjoy the book and look forward to becoming reacquainted with Handler’s work.

4 stars

It has been several years since Stewart “Hoagy” Hoag has had a bestseller. He has been filling his time with ghostwriting celebrity biographies and memoirs – and feeling pretty down.

He finally hits his stride again, and with his ex-wife, but back together again, in Budapest for a acting gig, he decides to go to her isolated home in the woods. He sets about with his chores until he is interrupted by the very odd Austin Talmadge. Then, the trouble begins.

He somehow gets teamed up with the reluctant Lieutenant Tedone again and once more is on the trail of a murderer. Tedone becomes less reluctant the more bodies that fall.

While I figured out the identity of the murderer relatively early on in the book, it was still great fun getting there. What a talent Mr. Handler is! This book is very well written. The plotting is tight and flows smoothly. I very much liked Hoagy, Lulu and Merilee. Interspersed with subtle bits of humor, the story moves along at a cracking speed. The story was over long before I wanted it to be. I was surprised when I went to Amazon to look at his other books and found out that he has written many Hoagy stories. And thrilled too. Now, I can really dig into the Hoagy series!!

I want to thank NetGalley and Severn House for forwarding to me a copy of this entertaining book for me to read, enjoy and review. The opinions are my own.

Finished earlier today, another #russelreads of a book due out later this year: THE MAN WHO WASN'T ALL THERE by David Handler (@severnhouse, pub date, May 2021).

It's a kind of homage to both crime novels & movies, set in the 1990s with a fast talking sleuth/writer (and his faithful basset hound, Lulu) getting wound up in the death of a local eccentric when all he wants to do is relax at his ex-wife's country getaway while she's off making movies.

Although the series is usually set in 1990s New York, this one takes out hero, Stewart "Hoagy" Hoag to rural Connecticut, where he finds himself out of his depth dealing with moneyed neighbours, rich eccentrics and people who seem to want him out of the way -- by any means necessary!

It's not a pure hardboiled or noir novel, although some of Hoagy's past seems suitably shady (there are hints at quite a backstory during the 70s).

There's shades of Chandler-esque wit to the dialogue, a few nice jabs at genre tropes and a gentle sense of the absurd in Hoagy's relationship to Lulu, his faithful dog.

In short, it's a fun book.

Zippy, with just enough danger thrown in to add intrigue, and a central character who walks that fine line between smart-ass and actually likeable, it felt like the kind of escapist US mystery I haven't read in years -- just what's needed right now, perhaps.

Thanks to @severnhouse for sending me a copy via #netgalley.

I wish to thank NetGalley and Severn House for the ARC of this entertaining mystery in return for an honest review. I am especially grateful to be introduced to an Edgar Award winning author and a mystery series that is new to me. I have learned that this is the 12th book in the compelling and witty Hoagy and Lulu series and hope to read some of the previous books in the future. This is a complex and challenging murder mystery that is lightened by sly and snide humour. Hoagy is a fascinating character and his dog Lulu is a lovable companion. The time is the 1990s.

Stewart (Hoagy) Hoag wrote an acclaimed first novel but has been experiencing writers' block. His second novel is long overdue. He has been working as a ghost writer for celebrities and inadvertently finds himself investigating crime and murder mysteries. He is accompanied by his faithful basset hound, Lulu. Lulu has the heightened olfactory and auditory senses of her breed and is very protective of Hoagy.

Hoagy has been offered a stay at the idyllic country home of his ex-wife. She is an actress going to Hungary to make a movie with Mel Gibson. He feels this would be the ideal retreat to finish his stalled second novel in peace and quiet. He is initially approached by a rude, repulsive man, Austin Talmadge, who demands to see Hoagy's ex-wife. The man is told she is not there. They argue and he makes a vague threat to Hoagy. Hoagy learns that his dishevelled visitor is the second richest man in the state. He has frequently undergone psychiatric treatment and hospitilization and has made many enemies. The richest man is his brother who lives the life of a nervous recluse in his mansion. Austin's brother fears him so much that he employs four former Green Berets as bodyguards with an attack dog.

Austin returns and kidnaps Hoagy and Lulu. Hoagy suffers a concussion from a blow and they are locked in a remote underground cellar. They manage to free themselves but Lulu badly injures her paws digging in the dirt to escape and Hoagy will need treatment for his head injury that causes dizziness. They find Austin murdered. His throat has been cut. There are many suspects who had reason to want Austin dead. Next, Austins brother is found murdered in his mansion, also with his throat cut.

This was an enjoyable and complicated mystery, told with humour and with intriguing characters. There were many twists, misdirections, and suspects .