“Chasing the Thrill,” “The Dead Husband” and other regional books
This month’s regional books of note:
“My Non-political
FBI,” by Bob Pence (Fulcrum). With 30 years in the FBI, Bob Pence might be expected to write a critical view of the bureau, with definitive accounts of major cases. But “My Non-political FBI” is no such book. Pence makes it clear that he’s not airing dirty laundry or getting even. And case details are generally classified.
Still, within those confines, Pence pens a detailed account of his time as a special agent, ending as head of the Denver office. If the story is as favorable to the FBI as if it were vetted by the bureau, it nonetheless gives an inside view into life as an agent. Pence covered hijacking, kidnapping, robbery, the KKK, hazardous waste disposal, even theft of bull semen. In Denver, he oversaw the apprehension of the “gentleman bandit” as well as the perpetrator of the largest Ponzi scheme in state history.
He was involved in S&L and penny stock fraud and a dozen other crimes. His biggest regret was not finding Jonbenet Ramsey’s killer.
The book is divided between Pence’s life as an agent and his views of the FBI and America today. While he doesn’t reveal FBI secrets, he includes tantalizing details about the bureau and J. Edgar Hoover. The director didn’t trust anybody who sweated, so before shaking hands with him, new agents rubbed talcum powder on their hands. And Hoover disliked memos that ran more than a page. One agent writing about immigration changed the borders on his page to allow for more information. Back came a note: “Watch the borders. H.”
Cowed agents didn’t dare ask for clarification, so in addition to adjusting the margins on their typewriters, they beefed up security at the Canadian and Mexican borders.
“Chasing the Thrill,” by Daniel Barbarisi
(Knopf ). In 2010, Santa Fe art dealer Forrest Fenn published a book and a poem with clues to a treasure chest he’d hidden somewhere in the Mountains. The chest contained millions of dollars in gold nuggets, coins, gems and rare jewelry. Scores of treasure hunters scoured the land searching for the chest.
In 2017, former Wall Street Journal editor Daniel Barbarisi and a friend set out to find the box.
Like other Fenn hunters, the friend was sure of the location. He was wrong. But Barbarisi was hooked, and decided to write a book about the chase.
He interviewed scores of searchers and accompanied some on hunts. He attended Fenn festivals and talked to Fenn bloggers. He interviewed Fenn and concluded the aging art dealer was seeking immortality. He even wondered if the hidden treasure was a hoax.
“Chasing the Thrill” (a play on words on Fenn’s own book, “The Thrill of the Chase”) is about people obsessed with finding the treasure. One woman went bankrupt, and five searchers died. Fenn and his family were threatened, and Fenn admitted he wouldn’t have done it again. The book is a look at why searchers dedicate their lives to an elusive chance for sudden wealth.
By the way, the treasure was found in June 2020 by Jack Stuef, 32, a medical student from Michigan. Fenn died in September.
“Hairpin Bridge,” by Taylor Adams (William Morrow). After police declare that her sister, Cambry, committed suicide by throwing herself off a bridge,
Lena investigates. She knows something’s not right about the suicide message left on her cellphone, especially since it doesn’t sound like Cambry. So, armed with a gun and a tape recorder, Lena drives to Montana to confront Ray, the cop who found Cambry.
They meet at remote Hairpin Bridge, where Ray describes finding the body. Then he admits he’d stopped the sister on the highway just before her death. Lena’s suspicions grow as Ray says his own twin brother committed suicide.
Author Taylor Adams tells the story from several points of view: Lena’s, Lena’s blog, Cambry’s and even Ray’s. At times, the tellings contradict, and the reader has to sort out the truth. “Hairpin Bridge” is a chilling tale with a satisfyrocky ing ending.
“The Dead Husband,” by Carter Wilson (Poisoned Pen Press). When Rose Yates’ husband dies of a combination of pills and alcohol in Wisconsin, she takes her son and moves back home to Bury, N.H. Home is no refuge, however. Her wealthy father is distant and manipulative, and her sister, Cora, malevolent.
Rose is a mystery writer, and Cora quickly points out that the husband’s death was forecast in one of Rose’s novels. That’s not all. In a forthcoming book, Rose outlines a murder that appears to be based on the 22-year-old disappearance of a Bury boy. The mentally unbalanced Cora is furious, and the father tries to get the book suppressed.
While this is going on, a Wisconsin detective, newly assigned to investigate the death of Rose’s husband, decides Rose has murdered him. He travels to Bury to interview her and stumbles across the decades-old disappearance.
In “The Dead Husband,” Erie writer Carter Wilson explores the dynamics of a damaged family and their pact of silence.
“No Regrets,” by Juliana Rae Nicewarner (Adelaide Books). When Claire Ryan reads about the death of her first love, a man she hasn’t seen in 50 years, she’s immersed in a flood of memories.
Claire and Andy Kovak grew up next door to each other in Chicago. Andy’s sister, Claire’s best friend, promotes their romance while the three attend Northwestern. Neither the sister nor the young lovers are aware that behind their parents’ apparent friendliness lies religious hatred. Claire’s family is Catholic, Andy’s Protestant, and the families insist that no marriage can take place.
Set in the 1930s and 1940s, “No Regrets” by Denver author Juliana Rae Nicewarner is a story of love and loss — and ultimately love.
Sandra Dallas is a Denver author. Contact her at sandradallas@msn.com.