Frames

Enter Valentino a mild-mannered UCLA film archivist. In the surreal world of Hollywood filmdom truth is often stranger than celluloid fiction. When Valentino buys a decrepit movie palace and uncovers a skeleton in the secret Prohibition basement he''s not really surprised. But he''s staggered by a second discovery: long-lost priceless reels of film: Erich von Stroheim''s infamous Greed.The LAPD wants to take the reels as evidence jeopardizing the precious old film. If Valentino wants to save his find he has only one choice: solve the murder within 72 hours with the help of his mentor the noted film scholar Broadhead and Fanta a feisty if slightly flaky young law student.Between a budding romance with a beautiful forensics investigator and visions of Von Stroheim''s ghost Valentino''s madcap race to save the flick is as fast and frenetic as a classic screwball comedy. A quirky cast of characters smart dialogue and a touch of romance make Frames Estleman''s most engaging and accessible novel to date.