Wendell McCall: Dead Aim (USA 1999)

From the Publisher:
Ex-musician Chris Klick is no slouch. And no sleuth. He prefers to sit on the porch of an Idaho cabin and be one with nature, but groceries and some of life's finer things have to be bought with cash. When a chance to earn a fee by restoring missing royalties to other musicians comes along, he levers up his six foot four frame and has at it.

So what's he to do when a beautiful woman with a mystery comes calling? When Nicole Russell invades his privacy and presents her story - a missing husband and a mislaid $50,000 - Klick jumps right in with his missing person skills. He's got to ask why, if the husband did a bunk, he took along Nicole's Labrador retriever? Luckily, for backup Klick's got an even taller friend, the former basketball star Lyel. Lyel, although "dependently wealthy," is independent as hell and still a player who loves a challenge. Ridding nearby Snow Lake of its tangle of corruption while helping Nicole recover her money seems like sport. Unfortunately, the other side is playing for high- and deadly-stakes...

First published in 1988, Dead Aim was right on target with Kirkus Reviews: "A beautifully handled debut novel that balances all the best P.I. elements with a lyrical sense of the country... Sardonic, wry, and remarkable in both plotting and pacing.

Wendell McCall: Dead Aim. A Chris Klick Novel. Poisoned Pen Press, ISBN: 1890208205 (June, 1999), 250 p., $14.95.