Boca Knights

This amazing debut introduces us to two great characters: the author, Steven Forman, and his alter ego, a sixty-something Boston cop, Eddie Perlmutter, who retires to Boca but brings Boston with him, in his bones. Perlmutter is destined to become a classic off-beat hero with one foot in the neighborhoods of Boston and the other in the golf courses and strip malls of Boca. Forman knows both worlds intimately and because he's such a good writer, they both crackle with authenticity. This is not only a terrific crime thriller, it's also a very funny book, with a pleasant mixture of wry observations and laugh-out-loud dialogue, the kind you'd expect from a polished Hollywood screenwriter. Hopefully, we'll see a lot more of Forman and Perlmutter, and if Harrison Ford is looking for an age-appropriate role he should look no further than Eddie.

This wonderful book is deeper than it may seem to be. I am an economics professor and economics journal editor. I spend most of my time doing research, while reading and writing nonfiction. Because of the constraints on my time, I limit my reading of fiction to those novels from which I am told I can learn something important. I was told that about this book. It is true. Yes, this book is a fun read. The book is hard to put down, once you start reading it. But if you take the time to think about what you are reading, you will find that you are acquiring remarkable insights into the history of Russia, Boston, Providence, Boca Raton, the Mafia, and Haiti. Much of that history dwells on the dark side, fits well within the book's gripping story, and is embellished skillfully by the story; but the ending breaks out of that mold and is very positive about the future. Once you have finished the book, you will likely find that you have learned more than you had anticipated about hate groups and intolerance and its manifestations over more than a century of history on two continents, as well as about human nature in general. This book, by a brilliant new novelist and exceptionally perceptive observer, could not be more topical to the world today.

Eddie Perlmutter grew up in Boston's North Side as a Jew in a sea of Italian Catholics. He became a cop who cared. He used his experience in the Golden Gloves to teach youngsters to box. After years of honorable services late fifties Eddie retired due to arthritis. He leaves the cold New England climate for the heart of Boca Raton assuming that the warmth will be good for his sore bones. However, Boca may be an elixir physically, but mentally he feels out of place. As his retirement drags out, he gets involved in local criminal matters so to avoid legal trouble he gets a private investigator license. Excited by the sudden change in venue, Eddie gets involved with the Russian Mafia, the homicide of golf pro, neo-Nazis and a lovely nurse earning him the title "Boca Knight" at least for his encounters with the first three contacts. Over the top with a zany offbeat humor, BOCA KNIGHTS is a delightful satirical crime caper that enhances the already capital of quirkiness, the South Florida private investigative world. The story line contains several suspenseful sub-plots that are fun to follow although at times can be humorously campy. With a strong cast of eccentric and dangerous individuals causing havoc, readers will enjoy this fast-paced tale; superbly held together by Eddie, who finds his niche stirring up seemingly anyone who resides along the I-95 corridor south of the Palms and north of Lauderdale after he failed miserably at retirement 101.

I would have loved this first novel if it was only for the fact that it takes place in my Boca area and I recognised all the places its hero Eddie Perlmutter goes. I would have loved this first novel if it was only for the homage it pays to my uncle's cousin Barney Ross. I would have loved this first novel if only because it points out what I have constantly pointed out: That "sophisticated" Boca Raton means "the Rat's Mouth". But this first novel also happens to be one of the fastest, funniest, most engrossing, most HUMAN, crime novels I've read in a long, long, time and doesn't read ANYTHING like a first novel. Yes, I know Eddie Perlmutter is already in his 60s (of course, so is Spenser) but I still want to shout to the rooftops: LONG LIVE EDDIE PERLMUTTER, and may his tribe (of books) increase!

Eddie Perlmutter grew up in Boston's North Side as a Jew in a sea of Italian Catholics. He became a cop who cared. He used his experience in the Golden Gloves to teach youngsters to box. His confident since early puberty is his stand erect penis who always talks back. After years of honorable services late fifties Eddie retired due to arthritis. He leaves the cold New England climate for the heart of Boca Ration assuming that the warmth will be good for his sore bones. However, Boca may be an elixir physically, but mentally he feels out of place. As his retirement ennui grows, he gets involved in local criminal matters so to avoid legal trouble he gets a private investigator license. Excited by the sudden change in venue, Eddie gets involved with the Russian Mafia, the homicide of a golf pro, neo-Nazis and a lovely nurse earning him the title "Boca Knight" at least for his encounters with the first three contacts. Over the top with a zany offbeat humor, BOCA KNIGHTS is a delightful satirical crime caper that enhances the already capital of quirkiness, the South Florida private investigative world. The story line contains several suspenseful subplots that are fun to follow although at times can be humorously campy. With a strong cast of eccentric and dangerous individuals causing havoc, readers will enjoy this fast-paced tale; superbly held together by Eddie, who finds his niche stirring up seemingly anyone who resides along the I-95 corridor south of the Palms and north of Lauderdale after he failed miserably at retirement 101. Harriet Klausner