Texas Wind

Rating:
Summary: Strong Private Investigator Mystery
Review: Originally released in 1980, TEXAS WIND was virtually out of print the moment it was published thanks to the distribution problems of Manor Books, the book's publisher. But the book has long been on the lips of fans of hardboiled private detective novels, ever on the lookout for quality stories from the genre. Finally, in 2004 the small publisher Point Blank Press has republished the book and provided us with the opportunity of meeting Cody, James Reasoner's calm but reassuringly capable Texan private investigator.

The book starts with an introduction by Ed Gorman where he gives a brief history of the early fate of the book, why he feels that it?s an important book and its place within the private investigator sub-genre. It effective in whetting the appetite by hinting at what we can expect in the story to follow, telling us what it is about the story and the principle character that appeals to him.

Set in Fort Worth, Texas, TEXAS WIND is as pure a private investigator story as I can remember reading. In so saying, I would be inclined to recommend it to the dedicated P.I. readers who like to absorb themselves in the case rather than learning too much about the characters involved and then enjoy seeing them evolve throughout a story.

We pick up the story as Cody is travelling through Fort Worth on his way to the opulent residence of the Traft family where he is to meet Gloria Traft who wants to hire him to find her daughter, Amanda. Amanda is a university student living away from home, but she has been missing for some time and Mrs Traft wants her found quietly while her husband is away to avoid unwanted publicity. Cody immediately does what all good private investigators do; he starts off gathering information through interviews. His first stop is Lisa Montgomery, Amanda's roommate. Lisa was the person who first raised the alarm and who seems to be taking her absence hardest. He follows that up with the owner of a bar where Amanda, Lisa and a boy named Jeff Willington worked as part of a band. They?re straightforward leads but they establish Cody?s no-nonsense clear-headed investigative technique.

Reasoner does a good job of stepping up the pace of the story at regular intervals throughout the book. At about the time that the case looks as though it is about to stall, Cody discovers that Jeff Willington has also not been seen since the night Amanda disappeared. This leads him to suspect that maybe Amanda has run off with the boy of her own free will until a ransom demand is received by Gloria Traft. The case suddenly spins in a new direction and Cody is no longer working on a missing person case, he's working on a kidnapping and has to make the decision whether to involve the police or keep on investigating.

At around 140 pages long there is no choice than for this to be a fast paced mystery. The action moves so quickly that Cody barely has time for a date with his long time admirer, Janice Bryant. Reasoner has not wasted a word as he has presented a private investigator story that focuses almost exclusively on the plot and, with one exception, has ignored any thought of giving us more than a bare-bones introduction to the characters. They're simply there to move the case forward.

The exception to this, of course, is Cody himself. Giving the story added appeal is his clean-cut personality. It really is refreshing to follow a protagonist who doesn't go in for the hard drinking or macho posturing which you find sometimes gets in the way of an investigation. We know he is well educated, owns a large collection of books and is a connoisseur of modern western art, listing favourites such as Frederick Remington and Charlie Russell.

I found this to be an enthralling book that combines a good solid mystery with a straightforward plot and a strong protagonist. Speaking as a fan of this sub-genre of fiction, I thought this was a very satisfying read.