Retired private eye Mike Devere is about to get a lesson in the meaning of globalization.

Blindsided when his wife leaves him for a woman, he sells his Austin, Texas detective agency and follows a random dart throw at the world. He hunkers down in São Paulo, Brazil, awaiting divorce and hiding from the tag ends of his life. Speaking no Portuguese and clueless about the culture, he falls in with a cynical Brazilian-American named Eterno Mendes who runs an advertising website for call girls.

Eterno introduces Mike to the enigmatic prostitute Sarah, seeking help in locating her missing girlfriend. Mike hesitates to get involved but stumbles in when they discover Eterno's girlfriend is also missing. He lands in a web of sex, blackmail, and murder more dangerous than any he encountered in his career. Caught in the crossfire of two deadly organizations tied to the US and Brazilian governments fighting from the shadows, hunted by a sadistic American contract killer after Sarah, Mike is forced to carefully thread a maze constructed by hidden players. Joined by Traci, a Brazil-savvy former US Marine and Vietnam war hero turned female, the crew descends into the netherworld of Brazilian internet prostitution.

The novel ranges from the bars, clubs and brothels of São Paulo to the ancient colonial city of Parati, a paradise on the pristine coast of Rio de Janeiro state which transforms into a nightmare from which Devere might not escape. Played out against the casual sex and sudden violence of Brazil, the book is meant for a mature audience not afraid of graphic descriptions of either.

Visit the homepage of The Drill Press to read short works by the author, Jim Chaffee. Some of his previously published work, including a memoir of his Vietnam experiences and several short stories and essays, are exhibited there along with the writing of other authors.

www.thedrillpress.com

Or go directly to the catalog page for more description of this work and to download a pdf of the first 100 pages of the novel.

http://www.thedrillpress.com/cat/fiction/cat-fiction-spblues-jchaffee.shtml

Sao Paulo Blues by Jim Chaffee is strong, haunting, and sensual, bringing to life the harsh beauty of life in Brazil. ... A modern Dashiel Hammett, Chaffee mixes a unique sensitivity to place, a keen grasp of social conflict, and moments of deadpan comedy, all navigated by a laconic, romantic detective who hasn’t quite given up on love.

--Kelly Jameson, author of the award-winning novel Dead On
www.DeadOnNovel.com


About the Author:

Jim Chaffee is an old guy, a Vietnam veteran, a mathematician who prostituted himself as an engineer, a gardener and sometimes a writer. He has published short stories, essays and a memoir of is Vietnam experiences. This is his first novel, but likely not his last.