"Good and Dead" by Evan Hunter

From: Learning to Kill by Ed McBain. Harcourt, 2006.

To commemorate Hunter's birthday (October 15), a review of one of his Matt Cordell stories originally published in Manhunt in July 1953.

In "Good and Dead," alcoholic former P.I. Cordell looks into the death of his drinking buddy Joey, crossing culture barriers into New York's Chinatown.

Later deciding "cops were the only people who had any right to be sticking their noses in murder investigations," Hunter gave up writing private eyes, but "Good and Dead" has what readers came to expect from the author: palpable atmosphere, crackling dialog, and the right tinge of noir.