Neil Brand looks into the death of a famous movie star and uncovers a dark trail of blackmail, murder and white slavery.
Neil Brand is a former World War I soldier and disgraced ex-cop, now running security for Harry York at York Brothers Studio in 1931 Hollywood. York has a problem with bad boy actor Johnny Cutter, who failed to show up on the set to finish his latest picture, and Brand is sent to find the star. In doing so, Brand uncovers a trail of white slavery, drugs, and murder, involving famous actors and wealthy businessmen—
and a dirty cop who was once Brand’s partner on the force.
As the body count mounts, Brand tries desperately to discover the truth—before he becomes one of the victims.
Excerpt
The man was as dirty as a cop could get. He was also dangerous and hated my guts…
Jones noticed and grinned wider. “Where’d you put the
body, Bo?”
“Be a little clearer.”
“You know what I mean. I left that bruno as a warning to Johnny Cutter. Thanks to you, Cutter didn’t get the message.
Now it’s too late to warn him.”
“Didn’t think a cake-eater like Johnny Cutter would scare you that much. You’re slipping, Jonesy.”
Jones stood away from the door, balancing himself on the balls of both feet. He dropped the cigarette on the floor and ground it with his heel, his eyes not leaving mine. His right hand dipped into his coat pocket. “That body shows up, Bo, I’m gonna tag it to you. Should’ve thought of that in the first place. But I didn’t come here to your cage to talk about a dead torpedo who only thought he was tough. I come to see a walkin’ corpse that knows he ain’t tough. Little Bo Peep. I just wanted to see your pan to tell you that what you got the other night is comin’ back to you, Bo, and you ain’t walkin’ away again.”
“You could have phoned that in and not brought your stink.”
His right hand came out of his coat pocket holding a snub-nosed .38 Special. He squeezed off a shot that shattered the glass in the window behind me, the slug tearing into the
Stage One wall. He grinned at me, slipped the gat back into his pocket, and pointed his right index finger at me.
“Tick…tick…tick.”
Professional Reviews
The Ice Cream Blonde
In The Ice Cream Blonde by Ray Dyson, Neil Brand is a former cop turned private detective/security specialist for a Hollywood studio in the 1930s. His job is to protect the studio
from bad publicity—at any cost. When one of the studio’s most famous actors fails to show up on the set of his
latest picture, Brand is sent to investigate. What he uncovers
is a lot more than either he or the studio had bargained for, including murder, missing women, and organized crime.
Sometimes it’s hard to tell who the good guys and the bad guys are. The Ice Cream Blonde is reminiscent of an old black and white movie, taking you back to a simpler time of gumshoes and the great depression. The author’s voice is fresh and, for the time period, very authentic. I felt as if I had stepped back in time. It’s a great book for a rainy afternoon when life is just too stressful and you need to escape into a great story. ~ Taylor Jones, Reviewer
The Ice Cream Blonde
The Ice Cream Blonde by Ray Dyson is the story of 1930s Hollywood, its actors, their indiscretions, and what the studios did to keep those indiscretions from becoming public
knowledge. Our hero, Neil Brand, is a former disgraced cop who now works for a Hollywood studio, and whose job it is to keep the studio from getting any bad publicity. To accomplish this, he dives into the underworld of organized crime, murder, drug addicts, and those who think their money and fame make them above the law. The Ice Cream Blonde is told in a blunt, honest, and gritty voice that fits the story to a
tee. The character development is superb, the plot strong, fast-paced, and tension-filled. It held my interest from the very first word. ~ Regan Murphy, Reviewer
I just finished reading 'The Ice Cream Blonde' by Ray Dyson and I can't recommend it enough. The excellent research into the language, phrases and slang of the time is excellent, (yes, I'll admit I had to look up a few slang words to make certain I understood), but mostly it became obvious if you continued to read the story.
The character descriptions and descriptions of the locations was detailed and spot on. This book has a little bit of everything you could ask for...love, humor, romance, war, parental relationships, murder, greed, drugs, crime and more.
The story flows well even with all the twist and turns it takes. And, I would be remiss if I did not include the hilarious 'Harry' who on occasion checked his own vocabulary, even when he was correct. One of my favorites was him not knowing the difference between a hymn from a hem!
A have already referred the book to a couple of my family members.
Yes, siree!!!
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