Benn newest novel is The Phantom Patrol, the nineteenth installment of the series. Recently I asked the author about what he was reading. Benn's reply:
The Bug in the Martini Olive and Other True Cases from the Files of Hal Lipset, Private Eye by Patricia HoltLearn more about the Billy Boyle WWII Mystery Series at James R. Benn's website.
Hal Lipset worked in the Army's Criminal Investigations Division during WWII and returned home to start his own private investigator business. He became a pioneer in electronic surveillance techniques, and Francis Ford Coppola's movie The Conversation was partly based on Lipset. The book, written by a former operative who worked for Lipset, shows how he used a mix of old and new techniques. Long, arduous days of surveillance and verifying detailed background checks, combined with devising and deploying new electronic surveillance devices. Lipset never took sides, always claiming that guilt or innocence was up to the courts. He was a central player at the dawn of expanding electronic eavesdropping, for better or worse. A fascinating look at the man and the era he helped usher in.
The Page 99 Test: The First Wave.
The Page 69 Test: Evil for Evil.
The Page 69 Test: Rag and Bone.
My Book, The Movie: Death's Door.
The Page 69 Test: The White Ghost.
The Page 69 Test: Blue Madonna.
Writers Read: James R. Benn (September 2016).
Q&A with James R. Benn.
The Page 69 Test: Proud Sorrows.
The Page 69 Test: The Phantom Patrol.
--Marshal Zeringue