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D. D. VanDyke
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Loose Ends: A Private Investigator Crime and Suspense Mystery Thriller (California Corwin P. I. Mystery Series Book 1) Kindle Edition

by D. D. VanDyke (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 10,259 ratings
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Kidnapping, Murder and Betrayal Stalk the Streets of San Francisco.

1 Novel + 1 Novelette! Two complete Cal Corwin, Private Eye cases.

When a young girl is kidnapped, street-smart but damaged San Francisco ex-cop California "Cal" Corwin is engaged to find and rescue her before murder raises the stakes. As a straightforward case takes unexpected twists, Cal must quell a growing fear that an anguished mother may never see her child again. With a shadowy crime lord lurking behind every unexpected clue, Cal struggles to tie up loose ends before evil claims its next victim.

Loose Ends is the first book in the Cal Corwin P. I. mystery series from D. D. VanDyke. Set against the rich backdrop of the San Francisco Bay Area, Cal Corwin novels brim with intrigue and fully fleshed characters from cops and criminals to hit men, oddball family and unexpected allies.

The Cal Corwin, Private Eye Series:
- Loose Ends+ Off the Leash
- In A Bind
- Slipknot
- The Girl in the Morgue
- Deadly Secrets
Previous page
  1. Book 1 of 5
    California Corwin P. I. Mystery Series
  2. Print length
    253 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    November 3, 2014
  6. File size
    2866 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is a real page turner and hard to put down. The characters are like people you know. I could smell the Cheetos the computer geek Mickey was eating, in the office. Cal knows the area and the people better than most and uses her knowledge all to a good end. However, things are not always as they seem. Who's foolin' whom? This makes for an excellent mystery and the beginning of what promises to be a very good series." - Gwen N.

"Loose Ends was a great read, if you're looking for a solid mystery this is a book worth your time. I was hooked by the story from the very beginning and I barely put it down until I finished it." - Melissa V.

"There are some great fully realised characters here, and never a dull moment. Full of action, plenty of twists and turns, as well as as real shocker of an ending, this makes a strong start for what promises to be a gripping new series." - N.A. Stephenson

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00P83903M
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Reaper Press; 3rd edition (November 3, 2014)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ November 3, 2014
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2866 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 253 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 10,259 ratings

About the authors

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  1. D. D. VanDyke

    D. D. VanDyke

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Click the orange button to follow D. D. VanDyke!

    D. D. VanDyke is the bestselling author of the Cal Corwin, Private Eye series, and lives with spouse and dogs near Tucson, AZ.

    The California Corwin P. I. Mystery Series:

    - Loose Ends

    - In A Bind

    - Slipknot

    - The Girl in the Morgue

    - Deadly Secrets

    D. D. VanDyke is the mystery-suspense genre pen name for veteran bestselling technothriller author David VanDyke. Look for more California Corwin private investigator mysteries coming soon.

    Sign up for giveaways of Amazon gift cards, Audible audiobooks and more at www.davidvandykeauthor.com/#!giveaways-and-promos/c6pv

    For news about upcoming books, follow the author's blog, twitter or facebook.

    Blog: https://davidvandyke.wordpress.com/

    Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorDavidVanDyke

    Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/DVanDykeAuthor

    Website: www.davidvandykeauthor.com

    E-mail: david(at)davidvandykeauthor.com

    David VanDyke's Amazon author page: http://www.amazon.com/David-VanDyke/e/B008EZHPC4/

    See more on the author's page
  2. David VanDyke

    David VanDyke

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Click the orange button above to follow David VanDyke on Amazon!

    New Space Opera/Military Sci-Fi Release: Straker's Breakers!

    Check it out today!

    David VanDyke is a Hugo Award and Dragon Award finalist and bestselling author of the Plague Wars, Stellar Conquest, and Galactic Liberation sci-fi adventure series, which have sold more than 500,000 copies to date. He is co-author of three of BV Larson's million-selling Star Force Series books. He's a retired U.S. military officer, veteran of two branches of the armed forces, and has served in several combat zones. He lives with his amazing wife and business partner Beth near Tucson, Arizona, USA.

    Galactic Liberation Series:

    - Starship Liberator

    - Battleship Indomitable

    - Flagship Victory

    - Hive War

    - Straker's Breakers

    Plague Wars: Decade One

    - The Eden Plague

    - Reaper's Run

    - Skull's Shadows

    - Eden's Exodus

    - Apocalypse Austin

    - Nearest Night

    Plague Wars: Alien Invasion

    - The Demon Plagues

    - The Reaper Plague

    - The Orion Plague

    - Cyborg Strike

    - Comes the Destroyer

    - Forge and Steel

    Plague Wars: Stellar Conquest

    - First Conquest

    - Desolator: Conquest

    - Tactics of Conquest

    - Conquest of Earth

    - Conquest and Empire

    B.V. Larson's Star Force Series with David VanDyke:

    - Star Force #10: Outcast

    - Star Force #11: Exile

    - Star Force #12: Demon Star

    The Galactic Liberation Series is David VanDyke's latest, a grand saga of struggle against human tyranny and alien danger. Personal adventures, mechsuit combat, and space fleet battles mesh seamlessly in this page-turning series of epic books in the mode of Honor Harrington, Starship Troopers and Star Wars.

    The Plague Wars apocalyptic thriller series begins in the world of today with a man and a woman twined together by circumstances, destined to change the world. It leads readers into an ever-darkening future of upheaval, struggle and war marked by the depths of evil and the heights of selfless sacrifice. Plagues, secret technologies and extraterrestrial meddling provide the backdrop for heroes and villains to struggle for control of the destiny of humanity.

    The Stellar Conquest series carries the central cast of Plague Wars forward a century into the future, when humanity turns to the stars to find its destiny. Follow the starship Conquest as its captain and crew take the fight to Earth's enemies, finding allies and making heroic sacrifices in order to secure the future of our solar system against a hostile universe. Read it first and then its prequel series Plague Wars, or read it in order from The Eden Plague onward if you prefer.

    The Star Force Series is a sweeping space opera and military sci-fi saga of alien invasion, telling the story of one ordinary man, Professor Kyle Riggs, who rises to become Earth's most implacable defender. In book 10, Outcast, his son Cody Riggs, fresh out of Star Force academy, takes over the legacy. With more than a million copies sold, this top-rated science fiction series sweeps readers into adventure.

    If you would like to review one of David VanDyke's books, please contact the author at one of the places below to obtain a free review copy.

    Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorDavidVanDyke

    Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/DVanDykeAuthor

    Website: www.davidvandykeauthor.com

    E-mail: david.vandyke(at)davidvandykeauthor.com

    See more on the author's page
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Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
4 out of 5
10,259 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Jose Paler
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Tale!
Reviewed in the United States on April 15, 2024
Verified Purchase
Love the characters and the old style of crime drama. The story was too short but very entertaining. Great read.
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Charles A. Ray
4.0 out of 5 stars Flawed, but persistent. Cal Corwin's on the job.
Reviewed in the United States on August 14, 2017
Verified Purchase
A young girl is kidnapped in broad daylight. Her mother hires California ‘Cal’ Corwin, an ex-cop turned PI, to find her. As Cal delves into the case, she finds herself in a face-off with a shadowy crime figure, and family secrets that someone might kill to keep secret.

Loose Ends by D. D. VanDyke is a fun read, with plenty of action, and a flawed protagonist who must struggle with her own demons as she works to rescue the kidnap victim before she becomes just another statistic, and others die. Hard-nosed dialogue and colorful settings will keep you reading until the climax. Corwin is a character that you might not like too much, but you’ll find yourself hard-pressed not to cheer for her as she fumbles and stumbles her way through a case that’s not what it seems at first.
One person found this helpful
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Annie Athens
3.0 out of 5 stars It's free and certainly better than many others on offer
Reviewed in the United States on July 30, 2017
Verified Purchase
We seem to have a surplus of American female detectives that are, gun toting dead shots, formula one drivers,black belts to boot and highly intelligent that make their male comrades look like wimps, They rush into danger where mere mortals would fear to tread. Apart from this I finished the book, although there were a couple of loose ends I certainly wouldn't call it a cliffhanger (like too many greedy American writers dish out) the main story was concluded. I did read some readers didn't like the car chases, I do agree with some very unnecessary sections of details o roads travelled, but I thought the actual chases was well written and exciting, so authors can't p[lease us all. I did read all of the book, I thought it was a reasonably good read and thank the author for the free copy.
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Tony Parsons
5.0 out of 5 stars A very awesome book cover
Reviewed in the United States on November 18, 2016
Verified Purchase
7/2005, San Francisco, CA (Valencia). California “Cal” Gale Corwin (f, PI, California Investigations) called & set up an appointment with Miranda “Mira” Almone Sorkin (35, mother, warehouse mgr., divorcee, nee Herndon, Stanford, Pharm D).
Her daughter Talia Sorkin (10, latchkey kid) had been kidnapped & the kidnappers wanted a ransom for her return.
Talia was not returned to mom.
Cal went to the North Bay Distributors (Rankin pharmaceuticals) where Mira works.
He spoke to Bill Clawson (security guard, retired Lieutenant, Chicago PD) about security & the layout of the place.
There was a huge drug heist at the warehouse.

Cal went to speak with several low life drug dealers.
Back to Bill’s place because he did not show up for work.
The landlady Ms. Gainer let her in.
Bill had been dead for quite some time.
Cal took Malcolm “Meat” Estridge & Mason “Manson” Estridge to talk to Phil Lattimer (security guard).
Will Talia be returned?
What about the drug heist?
Haven’t heard this saying since me/adopted sister found out we were “latchkey kids.”

I did not receive any type of compensation for reading & reviewing this book. While I receive free books from publishers & authors, I am under no obligation to write a positive review. Only an honest one.

A very awesome book cover, great font & writing style. A very well written who-dun-it crime book. It was very easy for me to read/follow from start/finish & never a dull moment. There were no grammar/typo errors, nor any repetitive or out of line sequence sentences. Lots of exciting scenarios, with several twists/turns & a great set of unique characters to keep track of. This could also make another great who-dun-it crime movie, or better yet a mini TV series. To be continued. There is no doubt in my mind this is a very easy rating of 5 stars.

Thank you for the free ebooksdaily; Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas; Amazon Digital Services LLC; book
Tony Parsons MSW (Washburn)
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Daniel Doherty
4.0 out of 5 stars Enough Action and Interesting Things
Reviewed in the United States on February 6, 2024
Verified Purchase
The first chapter was a little boring but once the book got going it caught my interest and kept my interest until the end. I felt the book writing was sharp and to the pint. There is a good car chase scene in the book. So, if you lie that it is a plus. The end was a bit vague because you have to get Book Two. However, I was satisfied with the conclusion to the book.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Just Jake
4.0 out of 5 stars good book
Reviewed in Canada on July 6, 2021
Verified Purchase
It was a good read and will satisfy crime drama fans.
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新しもの好き
3.0 out of 5 stars 明るいサンフランシスコに女性探偵が颯爽と登場
Reviewed in Japan on January 17, 2020
Verified Purchase
シリーズの始まりなので女性私立探偵カリフォルニア（キャル）・コーウィンの成り立ちが語られる。サンフランシスコの刑事だったキャルはテロリストの仕掛けた爆発物の処理で その教育経験のないまま助手を命じられ、作業中の爆発で処理担当は死亡、キャルも右頬と右腕を負傷して入院している間に上司が「当人が命令に背き勝手に助手をした」と報告したので首になってしまった。不服を申し立てた裁判に勝ったものの復帰できず、それでも持ち前のポジティブな性格で愛車スバル インプレッサを駆って私立探偵業を楽しんでいた。クロニクル誌の記者コール・セイジの紹介だと35歳の女性ミランダ（ミラ）・ソーキンから電話があり出向くと10歳の娘タリアが誘拐されたという。ミラは大手の薬品会社に勤める薬剤師で、製品倉庫に入る暗証番号と指紋コピーを出せ、と脅迫され、金曜日に提出したが日曜日になっても倉庫番は異常なしというし、娘は帰ってこず、で、なんとかしてくれ、と泣きつかれた。キャルは当該倉庫地区のセキュリティを監督するビル・クローソンに相談して協力態勢を整えた。二人で張り込み中、週明けの夜中に倉庫泥棒が現れ、追跡したが失敗し、日を置かずビルが殺された。大規模な薬売買情報を求めて怖い連中のなかに入り込んだが、キャルが白人だがメキシコのクオーターだと言うのが裏社会の聞き込みに役立ち、併せてコンピュータおたくのミッキー・タッカーという強力な助っ人がいて裏情報を手に入れながら薬の闇ルートに分け入る。キャルには知り合いのコワモテM&M兄弟を使って乱暴させたり、刑事を騙って強引に聴き込みをしたりと結構やりたい放題のところがあり、その意味で面白い。ところが目出度く少女タリアを救い出して散りばめられた謎をそろそろ纏めにかかるか、というページの８０％あたりで突然話が終わり、あとの２０％は別のキャル短編が現れる。ホンマにルーズエンドやなあ、となんだかよくわからないが、登場人物たちがそれぞれ面白いのでこのままおさらばするには勿体ないキャラなで、次作も見てみようか、という気になる不思議な作家だ。
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C. Jeske
5.0 out of 5 stars Really good book
Reviewed in Germany on December 2, 2016
Verified Purchase
I loved the main character, she is really unique. But so are the side characters. Good story too. And free. So read it, you'll not be disappointed.
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Good read, great lead character.
Reviewed in Australia on November 24, 2016
Verified Purchase
Very readable, love Cal the main character. She's believable and human, scars and gambling addiction laid bare. But in spite of not "doing it by the books", she's a very just person. The means justifies the end!
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K.Visweswaran.
3.0 out of 5 stars Started off very well and became complicated
Reviewed in India on May 19, 2016
Verified Purchase
It started off very well as an investigation,and became complicated ,and ended just like that .
I enjoyed it .
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