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A review by ndizz87
Death Claims by Joseph Hansen
4.0
Our hardboiled insurance detective, Dave Brandstetter, is back with another solid mystery that improves upon its predecessor in all the right ways. Though it still didn’t manage to go as far as this reader would have preferred, the ground gained in this novel solidified my desire to further sleuth around ‘70s California for more books to come. The author deserves an award just for making insurance so intriguing!
While the first book was a proper mystery in itself, there were certainly glaring flaws that needed to be addressed in future installments. The driving mystery was, at times, difficult to pursue with a deflated final act. The twisting ‘whodunnit’ was a stretch to surmise until it abruptly presented itself. Along with binary viewpoints of masculinity in gay culture and a somewhat cold, distant protagonist I felt a course correction was needed in order to hold my interest. The sequel’s mystery did just that by still being intriguingly twisty all while managing to be a bit more succinct. The subject matter was also more engaging to me as I found the theater, film, and bookseller circles to be peopled with much more interesting characters.
One of the issues I’ve already mentioned about this novel’s predecessor was its extremely stark binary portrayal of masculinity among Queer men. The novel shows its age in these viewpoints as we’ve moved to today’s spectrum-based perspective. I was heartened to see that we, by-and-large, moved past this outmoded cliché. We get a bit more meat in Brandstetter’s personal life. It’s more of a skirt steak than a thick porterhouse, but it’s enough to keep me satiated.
I greatly enjoyed the haunted nature of the relationship between Brandstetter and Doug. It was an interesting decision to find them where we do in this novel. We’ve come in at the point where the rose-colored glasses have come off and the honeymoon is over. There are skeletons in the closet, so-to-speak. The situation is untenable and some big decisions must be made if they’re to weather this storm. While it certainly still felt slighter than I’d like, we got more of the longing and heartache that he’s been experiencing all this time. I thought Doug would wind up being a throwaway character by the end of the first novel, but the sequel gives him enough agency that I won't mind him sticking around if that’s in the cards.
While the writing doesn’t evolve greatly here its insightful minimalistic nature is a refreshing departure from my usual flowery fare. It’s sparse while impactful. It’s subtle yet sharp. There were some very perceptive perspectives about the nature of love, desperate people, and the ghosts we chain ourselves to sprinkled throughout the novel. Hansen stretches enough of his austere writing so there are no gaps as your mind begins to build the visuals of the action.
I chose to keep the score the same as the previous book, though it's a definite improvement over its predecessor. There were still issues. It’s a much more muted novel in terms of action, which isn’t a bad thing I suppose. Not everything has to devolve into a hail of gunfire, but sometimes well placed action can heighten the story. It was a minor issue. The bigger one is that I’m starting to get worried that Hansen is set on creating mysteries in which homosexuality is a driving force for chaos, destruction, and misery in a person’s life so much so that death is sure to follow. This observation coupled with Brandstetter’s inability to form healthy relationships, we may be in for rough waters. I’m not so pollyannish that I believe it needs to be all rainbows and sunshine, but I don’t think it paints an accurate picture of Queer male love. I suppose only time will tell.
I think the most important thing the novel gave me is a clear path forward in continuing the series. While Brandstetter can be cold, calculating in his unremorseful quest for the truth, he’s a compelling character for his day and age. The improvements to the overall plot, mystery, and characterization put this series on more solid ground in my perspective. My hope is that we can begin to move away from homosexuality being the real culprit and find more of the humanity in our death claim detective.
While the first book was a proper mystery in itself, there were certainly glaring flaws that needed to be addressed in future installments. The driving mystery was, at times, difficult to pursue with a deflated final act. The twisting ‘whodunnit’ was a stretch to surmise until it abruptly presented itself. Along with binary viewpoints of masculinity in gay culture and a somewhat cold, distant protagonist I felt a course correction was needed in order to hold my interest. The sequel’s mystery did just that by still being intriguingly twisty all while managing to be a bit more succinct. The subject matter was also more engaging to me as I found the theater, film, and bookseller circles to be peopled with much more interesting characters.
One of the issues I’ve already mentioned about this novel’s predecessor was its extremely stark binary portrayal of masculinity among Queer men. The novel shows its age in these viewpoints as we’ve moved to today’s spectrum-based perspective. I was heartened to see that we, by-and-large, moved past this outmoded cliché. We get a bit more meat in Brandstetter’s personal life. It’s more of a skirt steak than a thick porterhouse, but it’s enough to keep me satiated.
I greatly enjoyed the haunted nature of the relationship between Brandstetter and Doug. It was an interesting decision to find them where we do in this novel. We’ve come in at the point where the rose-colored glasses have come off and the honeymoon is over. There are skeletons in the closet, so-to-speak. The situation is untenable and some big decisions must be made if they’re to weather this storm. While it certainly still felt slighter than I’d like, we got more of the longing and heartache that he’s been experiencing all this time. I thought Doug would wind up being a throwaway character by the end of the first novel, but the sequel gives him enough agency that I won't mind him sticking around if that’s in the cards.
While the writing doesn’t evolve greatly here its insightful minimalistic nature is a refreshing departure from my usual flowery fare. It’s sparse while impactful. It’s subtle yet sharp. There were some very perceptive perspectives about the nature of love, desperate people, and the ghosts we chain ourselves to sprinkled throughout the novel. Hansen stretches enough of his austere writing so there are no gaps as your mind begins to build the visuals of the action.
I chose to keep the score the same as the previous book, though it's a definite improvement over its predecessor. There were still issues. It’s a much more muted novel in terms of action, which isn’t a bad thing I suppose. Not everything has to devolve into a hail of gunfire, but sometimes well placed action can heighten the story. It was a minor issue. The bigger one is that I’m starting to get worried that Hansen is set on creating mysteries in which homosexuality is a driving force for chaos, destruction, and misery in a person’s life so much so that death is sure to follow. This observation coupled with Brandstetter’s inability to form healthy relationships, we may be in for rough waters. I’m not so pollyannish that I believe it needs to be all rainbows and sunshine, but I don’t think it paints an accurate picture of Queer male love. I suppose only time will tell.
I think the most important thing the novel gave me is a clear path forward in continuing the series. While Brandstetter can be cold, calculating in his unremorseful quest for the truth, he’s a compelling character for his day and age. The improvements to the overall plot, mystery, and characterization put this series on more solid ground in my perspective. My hope is that we can begin to move away from homosexuality being the real culprit and find more of the humanity in our death claim detective.