{"product_id":"murder-on-the-yellow-brick-road-9781504069175","title":"Murder on the Yellow Brick Road","description":"\u003cb\u003eIn this \"marvelously entertaining\" mystery, a hard-boiled Hollywood private eye investigates a murdered Munchkin on the set of \u003ci\u003eThe Wizard of Oz \u003c\/i\u003e(\u003ci\u003eNewsday\u003c\/i\u003e).\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e A year after \u003ci\u003eThe Wizard of Oz\u003c\/i\u003e's smash success, the yellow brick road is crumbling. The famous sets have been left standing on a soundstage in the depths of the MGM back lot in case the studio greenlights a sequel. But that doesn't explain what Judy Garland is doing there--or why she finds a Munchkin in full costume, lying facedown with a knife buried in his back. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e To avoid even a whiff of scandal and protect Judy's wholesome image, the studio boss hires Toby Peters, a Hollywood private detective with a reputation for discretion. But as Peters quickly learns, the real threat to Miss Garland isn't the tabloids--it's the psychopathic killer who stalks the back lot and plans to kill the young actress next. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In addition to the murder mystery swirling around Judy Garland, the second Toby Peters novel features cameos from \"Clark Gable and Raymond Chandler [who] give an assist in this imaginative mystery recreated from yesterday's movie-land\" (\u003ci\u003eThe Plain Dealer\u003c\/i\u003e, Cleveland).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eStuart M. Kaminsky (1934-2009) was one of the most prolific crime fiction authors of the last four decades. Born in Chicago, he spent his youth immersed in pulp fiction and classic cinema--two forms of popular entertainment which he would make his life's work. After college and a stint in the army, Kaminsky wrote film criticism and biographies of the great actors and directors of Hollywood's Golden Age. In 1977, when a planned biography of Charlton Heston fell through, Kaminsky wrote \u003ci\u003eBullet for a Star\u003c\/i\u003e, his first Toby Peters novel, beginning a fiction career that would last the rest of his life. Kaminsky penned twenty-four novels starring the detective, whom he described as \"the anti-Philip Marlowe.\" In 1981's \u003ci\u003eDeath of a Dissident\u003c\/i\u003e, Kaminsky debuted Moscow police detective Porfiry Rostnikov, whose stories were praised for their accurate depiction of Soviet life. His other two series starred Abe Lieberman, a hardened Chicago cop, and Lew Fonseca, a process server. In all, Kaminsky wrote more than sixty novels. He died in St. Louis in 2009. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Mysteriouspress.Com\/Open Road","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50485908570386,"sku":"9781504069175","price":13.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_5493f8aa-a901-4431-a8ab-6127437ec49d.jpg?v=1730414803","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/murder-on-the-yellow-brick-road-9781504069175","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}