(from the archives, Ron Scheer)
Robert J. Conley, Quitting Time (1989)
This short novel is a curious cross between a standard western and an
Agatha Christie murder mystery. The central character, Oliver Colfax, is
something of a range detective, with a license to kill, should he be so
inclined. But he’s grown weary of the work that has been his livelihood and is
looking to retire from being a gunman for hire. It is, as he says, “quitting
time.”
Considering a job for a Colorado cattleman who believes he is the victim
of rustlers, Colfax travels to a small frontier town, drawn in part by the
opportunity to see a touring theater company perform Shakespeare’s bloody
tragedy, Titus Andronicus. Agreeing
with the cattleman to find out who, if anybody, is rustling his stock, Colfax
gets to work and determines before long that a gang of cowboys at a nearby camp
are the only likely suspects.
But matters take a sudden turn when
the traveling actors begin being
brutally murdered. One mystery solved, Colfax begins tying to figure out
who
has reason to be knocking off thespians. The resolution, though a bit
implausible, is an interesting one and calls to mind accounts recorded
elsewhere during this period of unexpected behavior from theater patrons not
used to stage illusion.
 |
| Scene from Titus Andronicus |
Colfax is an enjoyably urbane character, if you can get past his history
as a contract killer. Having changed his ways, he no longer wishes to be a gun for hire
for men wealthy and powerful enough to simply exterminate others who get in
their way.
He likes good whiskey and a hot bath poured for him in his hotel
room. He knows how to do business and can skillfully handle an awkward client. Socially
progressive, he demands that a black actor be served at a hotel with the same
consideration as whites. Meanwhile, his apparent appeal to the opposite sex
wins him the welcome interest of one of the actresses in the touring company.
9 comments:
Was very glad to have made the virtual acquaintance of Ron through FFB...and to read (or reread) his reviews. Thanks.
He was a real gentleman. I was on my way to meet him when his illness struck. Very sad that never took place.
I miss Ron Scheer, too.
As do I. While sitting at Noir At The Bar Dallas last night before we read, I was thinking about how the last number of years have been so unkind taking so many from us. Not just our own family members, but so many great folks we only knew through the internet.
For sure. And those who never use the Internet, don't get it. How can we miss people we never met? But we do.
And speaking of missing people, we had a long conversation in the car about Bill Crider and how good it was that we got to spend quality time with him in Raleigh and Toronto in particular, at Bouchercon, and getting to see him interact with so many different people who were anxious to see how he was doing and let him know how much he meant to them.
Him, most of all because I spent time him at Baltimore, Raleigh, Madison, Indianapolis and Toronto. He was the best.
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