Palmetto

Before Lincoln freed the slaves, before the first traffic accident, before man joined the birds in the sky -- and old house was standing by the Sandy River in backwoods Maine. Red Palmetto, stuck in a campo near San Felipe, a small fishing village on Mexico's Sea of Cortez, is sustained by a dream of living in the house with his son, Max, and his woman, Caramela. But then he receives an anonymous letter asking him to kill someone, or great harm will come to Max. In a hilarious romp, Palmetto, bipolar amateur detective, charts an improbable course to find the culprit, only to be played the fool.An accomplished and highly praised writer, Ardies has had ten hardcover novels published, including Kosygin Is Coming, which was made into the movie RUSSIAN ROULETTE, starring George Segal. He had first credit on the screenplay. A sampling of reviews: "He has a knack of writing taut thrillers...brings the action down to the last breathless second, and he does it with considerable skill, humor and style." - New York Times Book Review"A deft and entertaining writer." - Chicago Tribune "His writing is red hot." - Times Literary Supplement [London]"One of the upcoming top fiction writers of our time." - The Toronto Sun"Writes snappily, and with a nice edge of irony and wit. Unadulterated enjoyment." - Buffalo Evening News"His bawdy sense of humor makes for a refreshingly different story. Impossible to put down...suave and sophisticated." - Publishers Weekly"He will hold you spellbound." - New York Times"We cannot praise enough the succinct wit of Ardies' prose." - Toronto StarTom Ardies is a former newspaperman and advertising executive. He lives in San Diego.