Written in Partnership with Amir Bakian
The City of Angels has many faces, from the manicured glitz and glamor of red carpets to the seedy underbelly of shady deals and criminal enterprises that help fuel the entertainment industry. In his exciting, darkly comical novel “Crimeline Hollywood,” Thomas Collins puts this full spectrum on display with a wry smile and stinging humor.
The freewheeling writing style is reminiscent of slick action movies and snarky comedies, but the author also takes his time to develop interesting, dynamic characters with clear motivations and emotional depth. Noting acclaimed author and screenwriter William Goldman (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Marathon Man, The Princess Bride) as a primary influence, Collins weaves his sympathetic characters into a zany plot that feels truly cinematic in scope.
Fast action and quippy dialogue keep the narrative pressing forward as readers are drawn into the world of Dash Harwood, an “Astrologer to the Stars.” Kicking off with a car chase through the streets of Los Angeles, the novel opens at a breakneck pace that sets the tone for the rest of the story.
As the events of the novel take shape, Dash finds himself on the run from a hitman, changing his identity and leaving his beloved LA for the safer, less conspicuous town of Upper Coolidge, North Carolina. The sleepy mountain town is the childhood home of his highest client, the award-winning singer/actress Sparklynn James, and Dash settles into a new life away from the chaos of the city, doing his best to manage his business from afar and developing a romantic interest in a local woman. His newfound peace is short-lived, and the story kicks into high gear when Sparklynn goes missing.
After federal investigators bungle the case, Sparklynn’s family recruits Dash in their search for the missing star, pulling him away from his pleasant little life in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Dragged back to Los Angeles and thrown right back into the fray, Dash reluctantly joins forces with a glamorous private investigator, Rebecca Fairway, and the pair embarks on a mission that pulls them deeper and deeper into the mystery of Sparklynn’s disappearance.
Along the way, they encounter a swathe of unsavory characters and edge ever closer to the dark secrets hiding throughout Hollywood. Their misadventures lead them through disparate corners of the city and beyond as Collins pits his protagonist against industry bigwigs, unhinged clients, violent criminals, and power-hungry mafiosos. At every turn, Dash’s searing wit breathes levity into the action-packed scenes, and quirky characters lend an air of absurdism to the whole situation that serves to satirize Hollywood’s obsession with celebrity and influence.
“Crimeline Hollywood” is a point of arrival for Collins, who has been writing since the age of ten. After a career as a communications director for a Fortune 500 company that provided insight into the intricate workings of the business world, he has returned to novel writing as a primary focus and turned a stylistic corner with this recent release. With valuable feedback on his first, unpublished novel in tow, the author set out to delve deeply into character creation while embracing a quirky style that draws inspiration from mystery thrillers, cinema, sleazy tabloids, and his own experiences with corporate greed. The result is a wild ride of blended genre elements that keep readers on their toes across moments of heart-pumping action, tragic romance, pulpy investigation, and laugh-out-loud humor.
Collins is able to satirize Hollywood culture while showing his love for the silver screen, maintain a sense of page-turning urgency while giving his characters nuance and moments of vulnerability, and pepper each chapter with smart humor, salacious headlines, and a touch of astrology.
The book’s website, https://crimelinebythomascollins.com, gives a unique overview of the story through tabloid headlines that outline the plot, a tour through the staple small businesses of Upper Coolidge, and an astrological profile of each main character.
This wonderfully chaotic balance of action, humor, drama, and mystery builds toward an exciting conclusion befitting of a Hollywood blockbuster, and wraps up with a lovely epilogue that further humanizes Dash Harwood – and leaves the proverbial door open for more adventures.
Rising above the confines of genre with an ambitious scope and deft delivery, Thomas Collins breaks new ground with “Crimeline Hollywood” in a way that feels both fresh and familiar. It stays true to its detective roots but blossoms into a raucous, comical look at America’s entertainment capital through the lens of colorful characters and harrowing action.
The wild story, unpredictable twists, and nefarious secrets are worthy of the tabloid headlines that grace the novel’s pages, and will have readers oscillating between nail-biting suspense, sardonic laughter, and delightfully cinematic satisfaction. “Crimeline Hollywood” is a thriller that soars above with style and substance that is sure to leave readers wanting more.
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