Hot Paint: A Neil Gulliver and Stevie Marriner Novel

This is the fourth novel in the comic crime novel series featuring Neil Gulliver, newspaper columnist and reporter, and his ex-wife, Stephanie (Stevie) Marriner, the gorgeous actress. Although many people acclaim The Elvis and Marilyn Affair as the best book in the series, Hot Paint seemed to me to be a far superior offering. When Stevie divorced Neil for treating her like a trophy, he never stopped loving her. Although she has had relationships with many men since then, Neil is her main man when she really needs a friend. In Hot Paint, it becomes clear that her emotional dependence is actually based on love. That love is tested as Neil begins dating a beautiful younger woman. The book opens with a crime boss giving Neil and Stevie a suite of Andy Warhol silkscreens that were done in a very small edition. Elsewhere, a compulsive collector decides that he must have this suite. That puts Neil and Stevie on a collision path with the collector's murderous minions. Soon, two Israeli spies arrive to seek Neil and Stevie's help. The silkscreens depict collectors and their prize paintings . . . several of which seem to have been looted by the Nazis and never returned to their rightful owners after World War II. The book is done with a large tongue-in-cheek attitude. As a result, you will find some delightful comic writing. The sequences where Neil meets and becomes acquainted with his new girlfriend are extremely well done. You'll remember those scenes long after you've forgotten the book itself. The various criminals in the book conduct themselves more like Laurel and Hardy than any international crooks you've read about before. The ironies are delicious and only slightly overplayed. That's the book's weakness. Mr. Levinson loves to draw out his plot and scenes with intricate reversals of fortune. It's like watching a fencing match with constant attacks and counterattacks. If he could learn to pare back these plots, the stories would move forward more rapidly and be more appealing. As it is, this story sometimes resembles a frustration dream more than a comic crime plot. The trip to London near the book's end is a good example of something that could have been skipped. For those who enjoy art, the book is a delight because it is built on facts about the art world that make the book more relevant and interesting than most comic crimes novels are. In the author's notes at the end, Mr. Levinson provides the background for the parts of the story that are based on his own experiences. Very nice touch, that!

Newspaper columnist Neil Gulliver and soap opera queen and theatre actress Stevie Marriner were once married. Now that they are divorced they have a much better relationship in every sense of the word. A retired mobster gives Neil and Stevie a suite of eleven Andy Warhol prints, each one containing a painting and the artist who owns it.Shortly after, the couple is asked to meet an old friend and two of his guests who turn out to be Mossad agents. They tell Stevie and Neil that the Nazis confiscated the paintings from Jews who rightfully owned them. They're also informed that there was supposed to be a twelfth print but it has gone missing. Some of the people in the paintings are dead and the paintings have disappeared. Neil smells a big story and Stevie wants to be a part of the investigation since she owns half the prints. As usual Neil and Stevie are going against some very dangerous characters who have killed before and have no compunction against killing again.HOT PAINT, the latest episode in the Neil Gulliver and Stevie Marriner mystery series, is an exciting crime thriller that plays out on many levels. The protagonists steal the show with their offbeat yet genuine relationship and the way they work as a team when the chips are down making this reviewer think there is hope for a reconciliation. Robert R. Levinson has written a strong story that links present day crimes to those committed during World War II.Harriet Klausner