Re: RARA-AVIS: C.E. Poverman

Gary Warren Niebuhr (piesbook@execpc.com)
Wed, 03 Dec 1997 07:54:58 -0800 >Frank August, the central character of "On the Edge,"
>is someone we all know. In the skilled hands of acclaimed
>short story writer C. E. Poverman, August explodes into
>full-scale life from the first page. We'll definitely
>be seeing more from Poverman--soon, I hope.

Poverman's book is from Ontario Review Press. I had a chance to talk to
him at B'con'97 and he is a really nice guy, and very easy to talk to. He
is a novelist and short story writer, and I did not get the impression that
he views himself as a mystery writer. So I am not certain that we can
assume this is a series title. However, its warm reception by most (except
the NYT -- see review quoted below) may interest him in trying this form
again. My review of this book will be appearing in MYSTERY NEWS in the
next issue, but here is what I said:

AUTHOR: Poverman, C. E.
P. I.: August, Francis (Frank) Ignatius
LOCATION OF OFFICE: California, San Francisco
BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION: Frank's father fought in WWII and then had a
general law practice. Frank is the oldest of the children with brothers
and one sister. The family was raised in Albuquerque, NM. Frank was
raised Catholic and went to St. John prep school. He was a guard on the
high school basketball team. After his father died, Frank attended New
Mexico State while working as a chef and a house painter. Frank married
Karen Bainbridge, a photographer and video artist, Los Alamos, while he was
working at Old Pueblo Lodge. They met and married in the three weeks while
she was visiting the Southwest from Boston. Frank finished law school five
years prior to #1, but he still needs to take the California Bar Exam. In
the interim, a mentor in the Public Defender's Office found him work with
P. I. Murray Axelrod. He has since gone out on his own with August and
Associates. Frank carries a Glock 17 and a .44 revolver. His associate is
John Giordano. His office manager is an Englishwoman named Gloria, who is
a tall strawberry blonde.
Frank has tight curly blonde hair. He is 6' 3", and has green eyes. He
lives in a Victorian with Sally and Joe, two cats. He drives a mauve 1970
Cadillac
In #1, Frank is 34. He has just quit smoking, but is probably an alcoholic
and an occasional drug user.

TITLE: On the edge
NUMBER: 1
COPYRIGHT: 1997
LOCATIONS: California, San Francisco
ANNOTATION: Frank August is a small time P. I. who cannot pass the bar exam
and sinks his money into a bad drug deal. His dealer friend Ray Buchanan
has been busted by the DEA and he asks Frank to find out who ratted out the
deal. It seems to connect to the year old murder of Ritchie Davis, a
dealer dumb enough to leave names on a computer disc that the DEA might be
able to read. For mystery readers who will not stray from straight
mysteries, there may not be enough to keep their interest early in this
book. For daring readers of crime fiction who also enjoy reading the
styles exhibited in contemporary fiction, this is a must read. Poverman
has managed to capture the essence of both styles and amalgamated a solid
work. The book moves slowly, explores characters, and deals with moods.
Yet the people who are displayed in it are the same struggling lowlifes and
minor players that a Westlake, Connelly, or Block might use in a more
traditional caper style, and Poverman is so much more successful than the
recent effort by Herbert Gold to do the same thing. Poverman has written
novels prior to this effort, and the skills he has developed in those
efforts show here. If mystery readers stay around for the whole ride, they
will be entirely satisfied with Poverman's talent. Highly recommended.
REVIEWS: "Unfortunately, this promising novel so steadfastly refuses to
take the obvious plot turn that by the end it's incapable of taking any
turn at all." NYT, 10/19/97.

P.I.E.S. (Private Investigator Entertainment Service)
Catalogs of new and used private eye fiction
Gary Warren Niebuhr, Owner
P. O. Box 341218
Milwaukee, WI 53224
piesbook@execpc.com
<http://www.execpc.com/~piesbook/piescatalog.html>
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