Texas Weather: A Novel

Rating:
Summary: Worth Reading
Review: David Weather is a Dallas County Assistant District Attorney in 1947. He is assigned the case of Philip Bauman, a Houston shipping line heir, socialite, dilettante man about town who stands accused of a brutal slashing murder that took place in Dallas. The killing was similar to several murders that started up in Houston during the war. The Houston killer, dubbed the "Maniac" in the hometown press, was credited with 17 straight razor murders in and around the city. Most of the dead were prostitutes, while a few were plain old dirt poor, ignorant girls. David must make his case while he has a reporter, Francy Cotton, on his trail wanting a story even though she knows that Judge Skelton has imposed a gag order. Francy also wants David to talk about his dad's death that took place in 1932. Francy feels that it was murder and not an accident. David must battle several issues at once. An anonymous messenger threatens his fiancee, Leslie Holcomb, while old and new family secrets endanger his freedom and his life.

The story line was very interesting and well plotted. The characters fit well into the story line. Descriptions of the crimes are frank and gruesome at times. This is a good read

Rating:
Summary: A good read
Review: Tricia Allen's debut novel Texas Weather is the definition of the term "a good read." While that term is often deployed as a back handed compliment, that is not the case with this fun and highly readable novel. Taking place in Dallas, Texas directly after the second world war, Texas Weather tells the story of an ambitious, womanizing assistant district attorney. Essentially a good man at heart, our hero is haunted by both the sins of the past (especially regarding his rogue of a father's mysterious death) and the present (in this case, represented by a wealthy serial killer known as "the maniac," whose evil is as graphic and disturbing as anything to be found in the works of Thomas Harris). As he attempts to deal with a spurned mistress and the inner office politics of the DA's office, he also finds himself attracted to a mysterious young woman who brings a deadly past of her own into his life. Plotwise, the book is often enjoyably over-the-top and readers who obsess over how everything logically adds up will be missing the point and the enjoyment of Allen's novel. Texas Weather isn't so much about the mechanics of its story as much as its about presenting a vivid and memorable portrait of a Dallas of the recent past, a town standing on the line between the violent frontier past and the more civilized future and grappling with which side to stumble onto. Allen's prose is readable with several witty and clever passages that keeps the reader turning the pages. As well, Allen is to be commended for creating a memorable cast of Texas eccentrics and then allowing them to run rampant through her book. Texas Weather is a book that bodes well for Allen's future as a novelist and should be enjoyed by anyone with a taste for the classic pulp mysteries of yesterday.

Rating:
Summary: "Texas Weather" With a Twist
Review: Welcome to Dallas! This book will take you there, to post WW2 Dallas. We follow David weather, assistant DA, as he makes discoveries about himself and the case he is investigating.

In his office at the Dallas County Criminal Courts Building he gets an unwelcome visit from Francy Cotton, news reporter. She has a theory that David's father, a former district attorney, was murdered. He knows that his dad died in a plane crash. He tries to avoid Francy and her questions. He is too busy investigating an accused serial murderer, Philip Broadman, and dealing with his fiancee who thinks David spends too much time on his job and not enough on his personal life, and dealing with Hank Callaway, who suspects David of having an affair with his wife. But why would this reporter think that his dad was murdered when everybody knows that Tom Weather died in a plane crash?

He won't talk about it.

But Francy is persistent. She goes to David's mother to ask questions. David is not amused. He confronts Francy who claims that David has some half-brothers and sisters as a result of his father's many affairs.

Later, Francy explains to another reporter, Jane Alder, why she thinks there is something fishy about the plane crash in which David's father was killed. She has some convincing evidence. She also knows about the accused serial killer, Philip Broadman, a shipping line scion from Houston. Broadman could have been behind the call that set her on this investigation of Tom Weather's death. She suspects that Broadman wants her to annoy David with an investigation of his father. Or is there more to it than just an annoyance?

Throughout the book there are hints of a deeper intrigue and complications that keep the reader asking his/her own questions about what's going on here? It occurs to the reader that there must be some connection between the Broadman investigation, Hank Calloway's demotion to the misdemeanor division, the plane crash, Tom Weather's many affairs and a young sadistic killer.

I don't usually read mysteries but since I live in Dallas I decided to give this book a try and was not disappointed.

Don't wait for the movie when you can read the book now.