Cast a Yellow Shadow

Rating:
Summary: Foreign Double Agents and Local Criminals
Review: Padillo lines up some foreign double agents as helpers. McCorkle does his recruiting from the local underworld. Much of the fun in a Ross Thomas tale is trying to guess who will pull off the double and triple crosses. There are always surprises. CAST A YELLOW SHADOW is an excellent action yarn

Rating:
Summary: Padillo Returns From Africa
Review: Set in Washington, D.C., CAST A YELLOW SHADOW is the second of the McCorkle and Padillo books. McCorkle is married now to a German girl named Fredl and he owns Mac's Place, a bar and grill near K Street. Padillo is the former partner in Mac's Place in Bad Godesberg, but has not been seen since he fell into the Rhine during a fight. Padillo reappears after being in Africa where he has become an unwilling operative in the planned assassination of a small country's Prime Minister. The killing is scheduled to take place in Washington, D.C., and to force Padillo to do his part, the bad guys kidnap Fredl. The rest of the story centers around efforts to rescue Fredl and stop the assassination. McCorkle and Padillo work in an atmosphere of great mutual trust and respect. McCorkle is the narrator and Padillo provides more than his share of excitement. The series improves as it develops, but even this early book is enjoyable.