Nothing against Groucho Marx as a sleuth but nothing for it either, it could be exchanged for any other name and read just as well. I love Ron Goulart's writing so it was a pleasing experience but I'm not addicted to the series to the point where I would read the whole lot back to back.

'Groucho Marx, Master Detective' is based on a masterful concept; making the famous Marx brother a detective in the Hollywood of the 1930s, interacting with various real and fictional characters of that time and place, interweaving throughout his famous witty one liners and non-sequitors. Yet there is something just not quite right with this book thanks to Goulart's execution of the story. The amazing premise has been a bit muddied, a tad spoiled.The start of the book runs somewhat against the u...

I should have realized that a book with Groucho would be inane but that wasn't uppermost in my mind. It should have been. The dialogue was too disjointed and off point to allow me to follow the story. Got 60 pages in and gave up. For a true Marx Brothers fan this would be worth it, but I am not into that kind of humor. Just not my thing.

I grew up on Marx Brother movies, which is evidently a rarity these days. My folks loved the old slapstick comedies, and I have fond memories of Dad driving us into the city for a double feature of Duck Soup and Cocoanuts, at a revival house on the Upper West Side, not to mention staying up way too late on school nights to catch A Night at the Opera, Animal Crackers, Horse Feathers…and thus a night owl/movie buff was born.I also became a mystery fan (hard-boiled, comic, classic, etc.), so I laug...

Well, cards on the table. I mostly read this after finding out of it because A) I'm a Marx Bros fan, and B) I had recently found out Goulart ghosted William Shatner's TekWar novels, and was curious to see how they compared. Frankly, he seems more comfortable in 1930's LA then in the distant future, as a lot of the latter's plot devices and characters come right out of the world of the former, even when they don't necessarily translate well. There's also the occasional odd approach to time, with

I'm not sure how to classify this book. It was somewhat of a mystery in the vein of the old American noir, but with more wise-cracking humor - a lot more. Or, maybe it's humor, using the mystery as a vehicle. Unfortunately, although I did find it to be an entertaining light read, to me the story wasn't as interesting as it could have been. The jokes were often funny, and I think it was a pretty good imitation of Groucho's style.I may read more in the series, and perhaps I'll change my mind. The

Synopsis: Groucho agrees to act in a radio serial. When a beautiful starlet is found dead, he is determined to find out who killed her.

Very disappointing. Pedestrian writing combined with homophobic comments the author puts in Groucho's mouth caused me to toss this book.

Pretty much everything I want from a Ron Goulart book, a light mystery, interesting characters and snappy banter. The vision of a slightly alternate timeline Hollywood seems spot on.

Not a fan of this type of book. It was more about Groucho Marx being Groucho what would happen if he was around during a murder.

A great Hollywood stewMix one part mystery, two parts old Hollywood movie making, to three parts groucho Marx's craziness until completely mashed up into one zany book.

Not the outrageously funny book I was hoping for. It was an OK read.

A perfectly fine murder mystery wrapped in humor and banter, written by someone who knows crime fiction and can write a very good Groucho.

Groucho Marx as a detective? Yes! This book is well written ,Ron Goulart has Groucho down perfectly ,its funny AND its actually a very good mystery.

Eh, I wanted this book to be so much better than it was. The Marx humor felt tired, and so did the threats from the police and the attempted hits on our detective duo, and the warnings that “it’s too dangerous!” Pacing felt slow, plot was predictable, characters were typecast. All that said, this book could have still been so much more fun but instead it felt forced and tedious.

I learned of Ron Goulart recently through the NY Times (https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/28/bo...). He wrote 180 books! Yowzer! I love old-time movies including the Marx Brothers and thought this would be a fun read - which it was. It was quirky as I was expecting and would actually give it a 3. 5. From the Times' article, I understand that his "After Things Fell Apart" is one of his "best-known science fiction novels." I'll have to check that out sometime.V

4 StarsIf you’ve never seen a Marx Brothers movie you won’t enjoy this book as much as I did, so if you have any plan to read it I’d suggest watching either Duck Soup (1933) or A Night at the Opera (1935) two of their best. If you love the Marxs then I’m sure you’ll enjoy this book.“I know who you are,” he exclaimed, clasping his plump hands together and producing a chuckling sort of sound inside himself someplace.Groucho rushed up to him, taking long bent-knee steps, and clutched the fat man’s

Here's the ultimate wisecracking detective, and, yes, it's Groucho Marx, in person. If you're a fan of the Marx Brothers classics of the 1930s—Duck Soup, A Night at the Opera, Horsefeathers, Animal Crackers, and the others—you'll love this fast-paced romp through the dark side of Hollywood. In Groucho Marx Master Detective, prolific novelist and popular culture historian Ron Goulart shows off his ability to mimic the irrepressible jokester. The novel is the first of six in a series that Goulart

I've loved the Marx Brothers since I was a child so when I saw this book being offered many years ago, I snapped it up! But the same enthusiasm that made me pick it up also made me cautious as to there being any possibility of it's being good, so it sat on my bookshelf all these years. But I'm happy to say that I finally pulled it down, dusted it off and I'm glad I did! It's a wonderful book. Oh sure, it's light reading, which would normally engender no more than three stars from me, but at the

A good old fashioned Hollywood movie classic type mystery. Very clever use of Groucho Marx and other real people and places. Author did great job of capturing Marx brother zaniness and humor. Had me laughing out loud on multiple occasions. Looking forward to next book in series. Also, I really liked the type font used for this book. Very easy on the eyes! Rather surprising for book published in 1998.