THE HOT BEAT
By Robert Silverberg
Hard Case Crime
227 pgs
Though a wee bit dated, this crime thriller pro is still
worth a read. Bob McKay is a talented band leader who lets success get the best
of him. He becomes an alcoholic and loses his loving girlfriend, Terry, and then
his band. Now on the skids, he drifts from one seedy bar to another until,
through a series of unfortunate circumstances, he is falsely accused of
murdering a local B-girl. Things go from bad to worse when the cops dig up two eyewitnesses
who claim he is the killer.
Considering the time setting, it’s no surprise when the
overly eager detectives proceed to beat the crap out Bob trying to get a
confession out of him. Silverberg paints a realistic picture of both the good and
the bad guys. What turns things around is a nosy reporter name Ned Lowry, who,
having previously known the musician, believes him to be innocent. Then Bob’s
old flame, Terry, volunteers to help Lowry sharing his feelings. As they start
digging into the case, they eventually uncover hidden clues that point to the real
killer.
“The Hot Beat” is a masterfully woven tale with an economy of words. Silverberg tells his story clean and neat like a shot of whiskey. And if that wasn’t enough, the good people at Hard Case Crime have added three of his short crime stories to fill out the volume. All in all, a nice package we’re glad we picked up.