Edsel

For Minor, who had a colorful, thriving career as a newspaper man twenty years earlier, a last chance to make it big - or take a big fall - has come from Henry Ford II and his new brainchild, the Edsel. Shrouded in secrecy, the E-car is to compete with Cadillac and make Ford Motor Company the number one shop in town...and the world. Minor's job? Sell it to America. Although Minor has his doubts about this car (especially that strange grille), he knows how to make an advertising pitch. But before he can start, he's hit with a hardball proposition from union leader Walter Reuther and a zealous politician looking for pinkos in Detroit's bizarre pro wrestling circuit. Bouncing back and forth between two women - one half his age and the other twice as smart - Connie does what he does best and dives into the Detroit underworld of mobsters, molls, wrestlers, and ex-cops. And finds someone with deadly plans for Henry II's grand dream.From Publishers WeeklyThree decades of Detroit history provide settings for Estleman's acclaimed Amos Walker mysteries, including Whiskey River. Again conjuring up the Motor City of the 1950s, the author chronicles the second career of ex-journalist Connie Minor, who is signed up by Ford Motor Company to promote Henry Ford II's still secret dreamcar, named after Ford's much loved (by him) and much hurt (by the autocratic Henry I) father, Edsel. Connie isn't sure that he likes either the car's name or its design, particularly the grille. He's also confused about his lovelife, held by his acerbic, longtime affection for Agnes but also drawn to spunky, younger Janet, a Ford secretary who is the kind of girl to help a man forget advancing years and a diabetic condition. Hired to sell "eleven million E-cars," Estleman's likable hero must also find out who set up the hit on a union boss and to figure out how Ford's designs become public knowledge so quickly. The narrative may linger too long on the size of a lapel or the color of a car interior or living room (both usually bilious), but Estleman's affection for the time and place are impossible to resist. This tale may not be as much fun as a Walker caper, but its quieter pleasures are as rewarding. Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Library JournalHas-been Detroit journalist Connie Minor is hand-picked by Henry Ford II to create the promotional campaign for his top-secret brainchild-the Edsel. On the strength of his reputation for clever turns of phrase and keeping confidences, Minor is catapulted from a nothing job in a small ad house to a window office on mahogany row near the legendary Henry. He's scarcely settled in when he gets caught between Walter Reuther and a Communist-hunting local politician who blackmails him into tapping his old underworld contacts for leads on a plot to kill Reuther. Bouncing from the mob to the union to the boardroom, Minor not only uncovers the murder plan but a stealthy scheme to sabotage the Edsel as well. Would the car have bombed even if it hadn't looked so weird? Estleman, who is equally as masterful with thrillers (Motown, LJ 6/15/91) as with Westerns (City of Widows, LJ 3/15/94), has crafted a swiftly entertaining story of Detroit in the 1950s with all the panache of a Raymond Chandler and a keen eye for historical detail. Highly recommended for all public libraries.Susan Clifford, Hughes Aircraft Co. Lib., Los AngelesCopyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.