Tools Of The Trade

by Bruce Rolfe

Overview

Chip Hale, a former Navy Sea Bee and Vietnam Veteran, is a blue-collar worker who is as hard as a titanium pop-rivet, except where it comes to raising his two wise-cracking, techno-savvy, teenage granddaughters. He is also fond of using metaphors and similes that relate to the construction industry, and quoting his grandmother’s wisdom. There is also a further softness displayed when he composes the occasional poem.

In the first book of the Handyman Mystery Series, Chip is faced with a cold case that rapidly heats up when a handyman hunts for his daughter’s killer after her remains turn up beneath the city’s police memorial. He relies on help from his granddaughters, and the expertise of his Handyman Inc. colleagues—an eclectic collection of retired professionals including a former Reno policeman, forensic fire investigator, Navy pilot, defrocked priest, U.S. Treasury agent, and reformed professional burglar, who all work as part time contract handymen—and the ‘tools of the trade’ greatly assist with finding a solution to the crime.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781681209470
Publisher:	House of Stratus, Incorporated
Publication date:	06/13/2017
Series:	Chip Hale Handyman Series , #1
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	308
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Born in Miami, Florida, Bruce Rolfe then moved around for many years, at first because his father was engaged as a travelling salesman, and later on after having achieved his ambition of joining the Navy. During his service he earned a Bachelor’s degree from Florida International University by studying in off duty periods over an eight year period, which then lead to a commission and his ‘Wings’. He flew search and rescue helicopters and was stationed in a variety of places, including the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai where he proposed marriage to and was accepted by Cora, his former roommate’s mother. Upon leaving the Navy, having attained the rank of Commander, Bruce and his wife bought an RV and travelled around for a few years, before settling in the San Juan Islands. He enjoys biking, golf, scuba diving, and hiking, and a lifelong interest in woodworking and designing, amongst other handyman skills, gives impetus to his writing the Handyman Mystery Series of novels. He leads a busy life, intermingling hobbies with volunteering and of course reading and writing. He has nine novels, one novella, two stage plays, several short stories and an uncounted number of poems under his belt, and there is little doubt more will be heard of this undoubtedly talented author for many years to come.

Table of Contents

1 Remnants from a Storm 1

2 Uprooted Clues 6

3 Start at the Beginning 15

4 Recollection 25

5 Twenty-Nine and Counting 37

6 Part of the Solution 53

7 Ciao 66

8 Detective Work is Different 81

9 Bittersweet Memories 95

10 In the Yellow Pages 105

11 Father's Day Brunch 112

12 Moonstruck 121

13 Two Different Lists 133

14 No March Gras for the Dead 144

15 Unsubstantiated Theories 149

16 Conflicting Interests 168

17 A Support Group Meeting 175

18 You Can Pick Your Friends 184

19 A 30.06 196

20 Tutf War 201

21 A Match 209

22 Solitude 219

23 Profiles in Crime 225

24 A Body in the Icebox 233

25 Lightning Strikes Twice 245

26 Another Piece of the Puzzle 254

27 Mustering Forces 262

28 Purple Paint on a Black Bumper 266

29 The Most Powerful Handgun in the World 272

30 Strictly Business 282

31 America's Most Wanted 295

Author's Note 298