A new take on one of the most famous unsolved murders in Hollywood - that of William Desmond Taylor. We are all fascinated by the scandal that burst from the studies of Hollywood in the 1920s and 1930s - and this does not fail to deliver. Looking forward to more in the series.

This was a very good book set in one of my favorite time periods—Hollywood during the silent film era. There are many books set in this period but few capture the feel of the time better than this hard boiled entry(and surprising on top of it that O’Donovan, I believe, is not American but Irish). Well written, suspenseful and with a more than adequate control of the tropes found in this type of book—I highly recommend it.

Tom Collins is a former cop. He has been persuaded by an American Irish compatriot to give up the blue uniform and night stick and move to Los Angeles where, in 1922, the burgeoning movie industry can use a guy who is handy with his fists and can be a reassuring and intimidating presence around stars besieged by reporters and other opportunists.
After a bright start working for the Famous Players-Lasky outfit, Collins has blotted his copybook and been sacked. He is now picking up scraps, albeit those dropped by the king of movie comedy, Mack Sennett. Sennett is not alone in his adoration of actress Mabel Normand, and when she is implicated in the sensational murder of top director William Desmond Taylor, he sets Collins the near-impossible task of solving Taylor’s shooting.
The most intriguing feature of this novel – and there are many – is the way O’Donovan drops us into the real life Hollywood of 1922. I knew something about the demise of Roscoe ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle, was aware of Mack Sennett and, of course, the names Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford resonate with people of my generation who are reasonably well-read. But I had neither heard of – nor seen pictures of – Mabel Normand and, thanks to the wonders of Google, I could see instantly how she was able to mesmerise a generation of movie goers and readers of magazines. Those eyes! Tom Collins tells us about them quite early in the book.
“She was an odd-looking creature, with those huge, half-hooded eyes. Beautiful, no doubt about it, with that little-girl ringlety innocence so favored by the movie-going public. Once, at a party, he saw her light up a room with her laughter.”

Collins is stranded in a Hollywood sea full of different kinds of sharks, but all of them deadly.The local cops figure him for the shooting of a Shorty Madden, a drug dealer who has been supplying cocaine, but they are minnows compared with the repulsive and vindictive Aloysius Divine, who was busted for corruption when serving with Collins back in New York. He blames Collins for his downfall, and has sworn vengeance. Now, Divine is in The City of Angels working as a customs officer; he smells blood, and it belongs to Collins. Even more vindictive and remorseless is mob boss Tony Cornero. His business has been seriously compromised by the death of Madden, and he wants either the actual killer’s head – or that of Collins – on a plate.
This is a cracker of a book.

To the casual observer, looking on from the safe distance of the best part of a century, Hollywood in the 1920s appears innocent and other-worldly. We might smile at the fluttering eyelashes and coy gestures of the female stars, and the black-and-white (both figuratively and literally) lack of ambiguity of the male heroes and villains but in reality the movie world was just as venal, corrupt and hard nosed as it is today. Gerard O’Donovan lifts the stone from the ground and we see all manner of unpleasant – and deadly – creatures scurrying around in the unwelcome light. The first pages of the book might suggest that Tom Collins has told us all that he has to say, but I hope this is not the case.

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 for good potential. I will read subsequent novels by O'Donovan.
(This book provided by the publisher and NetGalley. Thank you.)

A promising debut novel with a very good last half, but minus the drawn-out, somewhat clichéd ending.

<i> As usual with my reviews, please first read the publisher’s blurb/summary of the book. Thank you.</i>

Rough start, strained prose, but it gets much better by halfway through. I note that it's hard to write accurate period noir without the use of racist dialogue and attitudes. It's a trade-off between period "colour" and offensive modern tastes. It's hard to fault the author for this, and 1920s Hollywood is a fascinating period in American history well-worthy of noir stories.

There is a good back-story here, well-woven into the current plot, and one thing I like a lot is that Tom has so many friends in clubs and hotels around LA. When he needs help, he gets it from many different places, all happily due to his apparent past trustworthiness and good behaviour.

We start with a famous, real-life murder of a Hollywood mogul. Big money clouds the crime scene almost from the start.

From Wikipedia on the real-life murder in 1922:
<I>Through a combination of poor crime-scene management and apparent corruption, much physical evidence was immediately lost and the rest vanished over the years, although copies of a few documents from the police files were made public in 2007. The case is technically still open. </i>

The prose settles down and becomes quite enjoyable from about halfway through. O'Donovan shows in several places that his writing can soar - something to look forward to in subsequent novels, which I will read. The plot has several good mysteries, a nice romantic interest, and many interesting characters.

Lots of pics and some notes below:

The murdered William Desmond Taylor 1922
<img src="http://allthatsinteresting.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/william-desmond-taylor-publicity.jpg">
<A href="http://allthatsinteresting.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/william-desmond-taylor-publicity.jpg">Full size image</a>


1922 Pierce Arrow
<img src="https://www.barrett-jackson.com/staging/carlist/items/Fullsize/Cars/21234/21234_Front_3-4_Web.jpg">
<A href="https://www.barrett-jackson.com/staging/carlist/items/Fullsize/Cars/21234/21234_Front_3-4_Web.jpg">Full size image</a>


Mack Sennet and Mabel Normand
<img src="http://looking-for-mabel.webs.com/009%2010%20OCT%20PIXS/673%20Mack%20and%20Mabel%20signing%20in%201921.jpg">
<A href="http://looking-for-mabel.webs.com/009%2010%20OCT%20PIXS/673%20Mack%20and%20Mabel%20signing%20in%201921.jpg">Full size image</a>

1922 "Smile" Soda bottle
<img src="http://thumbs.worthpoint.com/zoom/images1/1/1110/11/vintage-smile-glass-soda-bottle-pat_1_76befbeb2ce4d1a7395a53a4fc53e09b.jpg">
<A href="http://thumbs.worthpoint.com/zoom/images1/1/1110/11/vintage-smile-glass-soda-bottle-pat_1_76befbeb2ce4d1a7395a53a4fc53e09b.jpg">Full size image</a>


The author rises to thoughtful prose:
<I>Her East Coast drawl crossed more than a continent and wrapped the final vowel in a veil of smoky sensuality it was never intended to bear. Tom held her eyes for just a little longer than he should. Another image of her, high on a flickering screen, drifted into his mind –a close-up in a Fairbanks costumer, high point of her brief career in motion pictures. Now this. He looked away, unsure of what was being unsaid, and nodded towards the paper stacks.</i>

Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks:
(They set up <i>United Artists</i> with Charlie Chaplin and D. W. Griffiths in 1919)
<img src="http://media-2.web.britannica.com/eb-media/55/134255-050-F6314E65.jpg">
<A href="http://media-2.web.britannica.com/eb-media/55/134255-050-F6314E65.jpg">Full size image</a>

A young Gloria Swanson:
<img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-V3pCH0Y_g9I/T1tPTQpB19I/AAAAAAAAELs/qtxo8UeYHLc/s1600/20gloriaswanson.jpg">
<A href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-V3pCH0Y_g9I/T1tPTQpB19I/AAAAAAAAELs/qtxo8UeYHLc/s1600/20gloriaswanson.jpg">Full size image</a>

The 19 year old Mary Miles Minter:
<img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q4Hn1VpLVHM/VBt8Ole3SwI/AAAAAAAAGvw/bgj4vkvFykw/s1600/Mary_Miles_Minter.jpg">
<A href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q4Hn1VpLVHM/VBt8Ole3SwI/AAAAAAAAGvw/bgj4vkvFykw/s1600/Mary_Miles_Minter.jpg">Full size image</a>

<i>The Wabash Blues</i>, playing in the old Ambassador Hotel:
<A href="https://youtu.be/kmkxc-FA5wg">on YouTube here</a>

Mercer Raceabout, loaned to Tom by a hotel management buddy. Nice!
<img src="http://bright-cars.com/uploads/mercer/mercer-raceabout/mercer-raceabout-02.jpg">
<A href="http://bright-cars.com/uploads/mercer/mercer-raceabout/mercer-raceabout-02.jpg">Full size image</a>

3.5 stars

Gritty and noirish historical series set in 1922 Hollywood . Ex-studio man and current private investigator Tom Collins gets caught up in the murder investigation of film star and director William Desmond Taylor. The crime itself is factual, and many of the personalities of the day make an appearance in the book, including Mack Sennett, Mabel Normand, Douglas Fairbanks and others. Desmond was found shot to death and the killer was never found.

The historical details are interesting and also the grim view we are shown of the Hollywood Dream Factory and the great lengths the studios went to to hide any personal vices of the movie stars.

Collins is a protagonist with a history. He's a former cop and he has a serious enemy he made in his New York days who will stop at nothing. He soon finds himself caught between friends, employers, the mob and a crooked cop who wants him dead.

Thanks to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

1922 Hollywood and film producer William Desmond Taylor has been found dead. Chief suspect is star, Mabel Normand. But Mack Sennett, producer, wants her proven innocent. That's where Tom Collins comes in. Coerced by Sennet, Collins starts his investigation.
This is the first book in a series of ex-cop Collins mysteries and a good start. Well-written and an enjoyable read. I look forward to reading more.

Great start to a new series! Look forward to more from O'Donovan who is a fine writer.

Golden Age Hollywood is one of my very favorite time periods, and thankfully this era is appearing in novels with greater frequency including The Long Silence. O’Donovan bases his first installment in a new mystery series on the real-life unsolved murder of Hollywood director William Desmond Taylor in 1922. Other Hollywood greats such as Mabel Normand and Mack Sennett play significant roles, but the main character is fictional Tom Collins, an Irish-American private eye with a murky past. Collins encounters former enemies, Hollywood greats, and various other individuals as he attempts to solve Taylor’s murder. The setting is fabulous; O’Donovan brings 1920’s Los Angeles and Hollywood to life. My one complaint is that the book is unnecessarily long and drawn out. I did enjoy the author’s fictionalized version of what happened to Taylor but feel strongly that the book should have been significantly edited. I received the book to read and review; all opinions are my own.

The Long Silence is classic Hollywood noir at its best - at once glamorous and dark.  It takes you behind the scenes of early Hollywood, peeling back the glitter, letting you see the personalities and the troubles people like fixer turned PI, Tom Collins was hired to hide.

The Long Silence is based on the real life unsolved murder of movie director William Desmond Taylor - not an easy task. Gerard O’Donovan does a fantastic job bringing Tom
Collins and his other players to life and creating a plausible if fictional explanation.

Tom Collins is a PI, still on the hook to Hollywood high rollers.  When a director is killed, he is hired to protect Mabel Normand a troubled star and Taylor’s rumored fiancé.  Tom quickly discovers more is going on behind the scenes, and that Taylor’s murder is just the tip of an iceberg formed by money, drugs and corruption.

The Long Silence is an excellent mystery, perfect for fans of classic noir and early Hollywood.  Tom Collins is witty, and perfectly believable as a private eye who still has a moral code.  I’m looking forward to Gerard O Donovan’s next novel.

5 / 5

I received a copy of The Long Silence from the publisher and Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

— Crittermom

This is the first in a new series, featuring Irish born Tom Collins. Tom started out as a cop in New York, before being enticed to a job in Hollywood, working for one of the studios there. However, when we meet up with him, things are not going so well – he has lost his job and is working freelance. This means long hours, for less pay, and a hand to mouth existence that sees him wishing that he once again had the job security of a studio. Still, he is not along in looking for work in Hollywood, which is full of those aspiring for success in some part of the fledgling film industry.

This is the era of early Hollywood, 1922 to be precise, and the mystery is set around the real, unsolved murder, of director, William Desmond Taylor. Collins is asked to look into the murder by Mack Sennett, who was previously engaged to comedic actress Mabel Normand, the last person known to have seen Taylor alive. Sennett has a motive and so, it seems, do several other people involved; not only Normand, but also up and coming starlet, Mary Miles Minter.

I have read a couple of books about the Taylor case and author Gerald O’Donovan gives an interesting take on events. He also does a great job of re-creating those early days in the film industry and of the period. We have speakeasies, stars, guns and goons in abundance. Collins is a likeable character, who meets up with his old partner, Sullivan, and his old nemesis, Devlin, during this book. This looks to be the start of a good series and I look forward to reading the next instalment. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.