cover image Tight Shot: A Hollywood Mystery

Tight Shot: A Hollywood Mystery

Kevin Allman. St. Martin's Press, $21 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-312-11904-1

Probing the lifestyles of the rich and notorious in this snappy debut, former L.A. gossip columnist Allman introduces likable Kieran O'Connor, a freelance journalist who specializes in ``event coverage.'' On assignment at the Women in the Industry banquet at the Beverly Hilshire Hotel, O'Connor discovers the body of honoree, producer Monica Slezak. Before he alerts authorities, however, he faxes the suicide note found nearby to his home machine. Then, while working with Slezak's producer husband on a quickie bio of her life, O'Connor learns of her bouts of debilitating depression and the medication she took for it. Beginning to doubt the general consensus that Monica killed herself over not getting an Oscar nomination, O'Connor considers the possibility of murder. He meets a galvanizing ex-con author who was unhappy with the screenplay of his bestseller that Monica was about to direct. But would someone kill over a bad rewrite? Other suspects, competitors and friends surface before the wisecracking, slightly bumbling O'Connor, along with his bisexual girlfriend Claudia, finally confront Monica's murderer. Readers will look for a sequel. (Mar.)