The Cigarette Girl on the Tango

by D.J. Phinney

Overview

The Cigarette Girl on the Tango, D. J. Phinney's follow-up to The Anaheim Beauties Valencia Queen, unveils another hushed-up chapter of California history. In the depths of the Great Depression, the Santa Ana River floods of 1938 roar through Orange County, destroying, Atwood, a river-edge bracero hamlet. 19-year-old Willie O'Toole searches for his missing love, Elena Valenzuela, almost certain she has drowned. At a tamale shop near the western edge of rural Santa Ana, he meets Loretta, who looks exactly like Elena without her innocence. She claims to be Elena's sister. But some facts aren't adding up. Then Willie learns Elena's corpse washed up onshore at Seal Beach, then called "Sin City", the red-light district and gambling mecca of Orange County. He follows Elena's trail to the gambling ships offshore. There, Willie's horrified to learn his love, Elena, didn't drown and that Loretta isn't who she claimed to be. Steeped in more true but hidden history, once more the story echoes the present and strips the makeup off our candy-coated past. Enjoy a journey to a California few people remember, where a thin veneer of innocence masked an underworld of lies.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781732903418
Publisher:	Arroyo Willow Press
Publication date:	12/23/2020
Series:	A Red Car Noir Series , #2
Pages:	182
Product dimensions:	5.25(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.42(d)

About the Author

A Southern California native with a passion for history and construction, D.J. Phinney graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic with a master's in engineering in the twilight of perceived American innocence. Leaving the Air Force after the Vietnam war, he returned to California and built a career as a licensed civil and mechanical engineer responsible for designing and overseeing construction of over $100 million dollars' worth of water and wastewater infrastructure in California and Arizona. His favorite accolade came from a contractor who asked his client. When he left the worksite was Dennis clean or dirty? On being told his clothes were filthy, the client was told, That's why we hire him. I've been fortunate to always have a healthy share of work. A death threat from an insurance company in the aftermath of the Northridge Earthquake overturned Phinney's world and launched him in a new direction. Figuring novels are a sneaky way to write about the truth, he began writing fiction writing. He was captivated by L.A.'s master storytellers, the likes of Raymond Chandler, James M. Cain, James Ellroy, and Ray Bradbury. Phinney writes what he calls Red Car Noir, tales of the dark side of the American dream typically set around Los Angeles in the early 1900s when a veneer of front-page optimism whitewashed the corruption that shattered lives on boulevards of broken dreams. The Cigarette Girl on the Tango is Phinney's second published novel, another a journey to a California few people remember, where a thin veneer of innocence masked an underworld of lies. Phinney has been married to his wife, Sharon, for over 40 years with one grown son and two grandsons. He divides his time between Irvine and La Cañada, California, and when not writing, he can often be found exploring local history, cooking, or adding to the natural landscape of his La Cañada home. Yes, he is an accomplished amateur chef who sometimes even shares his recipes!