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Rating: 
Summary: I can't wait for the second book!
Review: Alright, I'll admit it, I bought this book because out of support and curiosity. The author is a family friend and neighbor from my childhood who I haven't seen in 20+ years. But that isn't what kept me riveted. Once I started reading I couldn't put it down! I really like the characters and am excited to see that this is the first in a series - I'm looking forward to the next one. The Southern California settings are familiar and realistic. I've put in an Amazon alert for future works. Baron, congratulations on writing such a great book. Cheers!
Rating:
Summary: A Satisfying Debut
Review: As a mystery writer with my debut novel in its initial release, I salute Baron Birtcher on his first Mike Travis novel. The mystery begins routinely enough with Travis, a former cop, coming out of retirement because of the recent murder of a woman whom he suspects is the victim of a serial killer who got away when Travis was still on the force. From that seemingly routine launch, the plot moves swiftly and unexpectedly. Birtcher writes tough prose and captures the essence of a tough world. ROADHOUSE BLUES is contemporary noir at its best.
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Summary: One of the Best I've Read In a Long, Long Time!
Review: Birtcher's Mike Travis is one of the most refreshing and engaging tough-guy detectives I've found in a very long time. The setting is mostly Avalon (Catalina Island) and Los Angeles, and the plot is full of bizarre twists and turns, not the least of which involves Doors' front man Jim Morrison. Very inventive and original.
Rating:
Summary: Stirring Exciting New Character and Writer
Review: Excellently written by Baron Birtcher...new action Mike Travis character will keep readers coming back for future stories. Each paragraph held the story line and moved swiftly through to the finale.....I can't wait for the next Mike Travis action mystery. I expect to line my bookshelves with more of Baron Birtcher's books. No doubt this new writer will be making it to the top of the best seller charts quite rapidly. Go for it Baron!
Rating:
Summary: One of the best of 2001
Review: I came to this book after a book store friend of mine turned me on to Birtcher's newest, RUBY TUESDAY. I read that one in one sittng, and had to read ROADHOUSE BLUES. The plot is highly orginal -- a link to the seventies music scene via the always interesting/controversial Jim Morrison, and extremely well written. Birtcher has the ability not only to make characters come alive, but to bring you right into the locale. You can feel the sand in your toes when you stand at the crime scene under the pier at Venice Beach, and feel the pouring rain during the climactic chase scene in Avalon. I loved this book, and felt the same about Ruby. Together, these are TWO OF THE BEST HARDBOILED NOVELS I'VE READ ALL YEAR.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best of 2001
Review: I read about this new writer and Roadhouse Blues in the L.A.Times. It is the first in a series about Ex-LA honicide detective, Mike Travis. Being a series reader including all the books by Robert Crais, Dennis Lehane, Lawrence Block, and Steve Hamilton, gave me a base of reference from which to judge. I think that Roadhouse Blues is one of the best books of 2001 and I am surprised that it did not get consideration for the Best First Novel for the Edgars. It's just that good!
Thanks Baron for the Excellent read. Please Keep up the good work.
Rating: 
Summary: Pulp pap with yacht ...
Review: My review [and my person] were attacked by a "reader from Three Rivers Kansas" [see March 19 review comments.] In response, just let me note that this "reader from Three Rivers Kansas" had posted SIX 5-star "reviews" of ROADHOUSE BLUES. Just yesterday, amazon.com noted this unethical behavior, and yanked five of her/his "reviews." So you judge who, "might be better served saving his rantings for something about which he knows" and who, "ought to ...get out a little more." Common courtesy and reasonable ethics do not necessarily go hand in hand with good literary judgment, of course, but you have a right to know about this situation. It's still a very badly written book, in my opinion, and priming the pump by submitting multiple reviews won't improve it. That said, here is my original review: I see that I am odd man out in thinking that Roadhouse Blues is a weak effort, a stew, a melange of pop and cop cultures, ill conceived and poorly executed. Well ... First, Mike Travis is altogether too full of himself, reflecting on his [mostly previous to this plot] prowess. A challenge of writing tough guy detective fiction in the first person, is how to develop our hero while avoiding the appearance of arrogance and self-satisfaction. The first line tells us we have a problem: "I carefully rolled my six-foot-one inch frame out of my generous bed in the master stateroom of my sailing yacht, the Kehau ..." Right. Travis lets us know that he likes, "bottled water" for his "morning cup of [caffeine-free] herbal tea," and glances for our benefit at his Tag Heuer diving watch [one of his bar pals has a Rolex - dueling watches,] listening to his, "custom designed Bang and Olufson component [stereo] system" while staying in touch with his, "top-of-the-line laptop computer." As a reader, I fear that Travis may leap from the pages and beat me to death with his wallet. [Robert Parker has this problem with Spenser, but handles it much more gracefully, with Hawk to undercut Spenser's egomania.] Second, although he suffers greatly from having a super-wealthy father, early retirement, a plush and inherited family home, and an impressive yacht [which he will sail somewhere some day,] he doesn't really DO much except point his Beretta into the air, to shoot sometime he knows not where, and telling us how much he is still admired for what he used to do. [That Beretta bothered me. I felt Travis was in danger of tripping over his ego and firing at an innocent.] Third, what might have been the most appealing aspect of Roadhouse Blues, the raw, jaded, seen-it-all give and take among the police, is just dull, serving mostly to show the awe with which our hero is regarded. Even the potentially interesting Hans Yamaguchi, exists only as a mirror to Travis's self-image. The other cops are mockeries of leaden stereotypes, not pleasantly brutish but banal. Fourth, and vastly most important, the writing is amateurish, at best, execrable in fact. Sentence structure, word choice, you name it; this is a first effort, a high-school English class mockery of detective fiction. Here's Travis attempting a bit of internal monologue ... "A stony silence fell over the room. I had to DO something! THINK! ... WHAT WOULD I DO? WHERE WOULD I GO? SOMEWHERE SYMBOLIC ... And it came. Like an epiphany. I went cold, and deadly calm. 'I know where he is, I said.'" Mike: show us you are "deadly calm." Don't talk about it so much. I am glad, though, that I am in the minority in these opinions. Mr. Bircher needs the money to attend the Iowa Writer's Workshop. He could attend with "Roadhouse Blues" as his first draft for comment by his aspiring peers. Mr. Birtcher has a follow-up novel which I purchased without having read "Roadhouse Blues." OK. I will read it, and I certainly hope he has profited from his on the job training. It may be that some day mentioning Birtcher in the same sentence with Michael Connelly and Dennis Lahane will make some sense. Now, it simply demeans the work of those two good gentlemen. BTW, for those who object to the lack of editorial management in contemporary fiction, you will have a field day wading through the typos.
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