James Murray is a young man with a dream -- he wants to be a writer just like his idol, Dashiell Hammett. While working as a clerk at a swank downtown department store, James pens a novel that turns out to be a surprise success. Now, he's the junior screenwriter at a major Hollywood studio. During his time there, productions at the studio have been plagued by a series of mysterious accidents including fires, damage to costumes, theft of miniatures used for trick shots -- and the worst: theft of an important scene from the studio's big picture, "King Kong." Not wanting to attract too much attention by calling the police, head of production Merian C. Cooper enlists James's help in trying to find out what's behind the sabotage. "Sabotage at RKO Studio," and its predecessor "Murder at Eastern Columbia," are unlike any other books you've read: Not a single novel, it's two parallel novels, featuring two heroes, working two mysteries in two different versions of 1930s Hollywood. Join James and his alter ego as they each try to find the saboteurs behind the "accidents." His hard-boiled alter ego -- neither a private detective nor a police officer: just someone "who wants to help" -- needs to find out who's trying to pin the "accidents" on him. Two men in two stories work their way through 1930s Hollywood following clews, interviewing people who might know something, going from location to location, with one goal in mind: find out who might want to damage the studio. Along the way, they meet a rich cast of characters including a glamorous movie star; a poor Mexican girl working as a secretary in a bank; a mysterious blonde secretary who harbors a deadly secret; the intriguing Mexican girl from a very wealthy family who still mourns the death of her brother; the silent-screen star who left movies to marry into oil; a handsome young police officer just trying to do his job; and the pretty, young girl who gives tours at the Richfield Oil Building. "Sabotage at RKO Studio" is filled with twists, turns and a final scene at a glamorous Hollywood movie premiere at Grauman's Chinese Theatre. Come along for the ride in this, the second James Murray mystery: the story of a young man who dreams of something better.
About the Author: In more than three decades as a professional writer/journalist, Christopher has covered myriad subjects and interviewed thousands of people from the famous to the unknown. He brings his years of experience to each one of his novels. Every work is different. Through reading his novels, you can visit the American home front in the 1940s, a future San Francisco wiped out by a killer earthquake, a romantic love affair in post-war Paris in the 1920s, a future planet where the major industry is making babies -- or an exciting detective story set in 1930s Los Angeles. In his career, his work has appeared in daily newspapers, monthly magazines, extensively on radio and the occasional dalliance with television. He has written advertising copy and radio commercials -- and continues to write. Works featuring his byline include "Murder at Eastern Columbia" -- a James Murray Mystery that takes place in 1931 Los Angeles; "The Babi Makers" -- a science fiction tale about a world where the most important resource is babies; "Sarah & Gerald" -- a novel about Paris in the 1920s; "Forever - and other stories" -- a collection of short stories; "The Life Line" -- the novel of the big one that levels San Francisco; "News on the Home Front" -- a novel of two friends during World War Two; and "Mama Cat" -- a book for children. Also, several short plays, a few radio plays and a boat load of radio documentaries.