This is a rare unread vintage and out of print copy of the first Dan Valentine & Clarisse Lovelace mystery titled VERMILION written by NATHAN ALDYNE in 1980, published and distributed by BALLANTINE BOOKS. 240 pages in length.

"A dead young hustler is found with a lipstick-smeared handkerchief on the lawn of a queer-baiting legislator. Boston's political and queer communities are up in arms about the matter, and the police are bent on finding the killer - fast. Best friends Daniel Valentine, gay bartender by night, detective any hour, and Clarisse Lovelace, unmotivated real estate agent, team up and hit the streets of Boston's Combat Zone to search for the killer. Through a sinister underworld of bars and baths, bondage and blackmail, they're out to solve a very bizarre murder and uncover some very kinky and perhaps deadly games."

"Fast-paced, funny, and often frightening.*
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

"Vermilion closely resembles the sophisticated comedy-mystery of W.S. Van Dyke's film version of Dashiell Hammett's The Thin Man. The amateur detectives here are... like '80's reincarnations of Nick and Nora Charles, they drink Scotch and exchange witty repartee while tracking down clues and keeping tabs on suspects that range from a psychopathic policeman, a straight couple who rent themselves out for S/M orgies, and a tasteful, plano-playing drag queen who knows more than 700 show tunes."
THE BOSTON PHOENIX

"A first-rate mystery, a tautly constructed, well-paced tale about a weird murder in Boston...
Moments of delicious suspense unfold as Dan and Clarisse begin their sleuthing into the seamier quarters of town. Along the way they bump into an offbeat bunch of deftly sketched minor characters.
THE ADVOCATE

"All of It is done well and in a fresh, exciting style. the book is a wonderfully entertaining read."
NEW YORK NATIVE

"Aldyne has created a tight little thriller that will have you clinging to the last pages, in the finest who-done-it style, with a flair and pace that are strictly top drawer."
ALTERNATE

"Fresh as today's headlines... impressive writing. plotting, and characterization. Boston's upper-crust and lower classes are remarkably well portrayed.
MYSTERY

"A wonderful detective novel...richly accurate…a great story, well told, with a horde of fascinating characters.
DRUMMER
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Due to recent delivery issues with the USPS I now ship all items via Priority Mail. The below-cost price for U.S. customers is $9.90 for the first item and an additional $2.00 for each item thereafter. $50 of insurance is included in this price. I’m selling my collection of vintage 1960-1980s gay pulp paperback novels, pictorial & hardcore magazines, physique photography, magazines & artwork.