Fadeout (1970) by Joseph Hansen Fadeout is a hardboiled mystery novel by American crime writer Joseph Hansen, and the first to feature his popular character Dave Brandstetter, an openly gay detective. Brandstetter has been cited as a groundbreaking character in gay fiction and crime fiction. Hansen published eleven further books featuring Brandstetter, ending with A Country of Old Men in 1991. Hansen disliked the term "gay" and always described himself as "homosexual". (Source: Wikipedia)

@thethistlegirl

// a gay private investigator investigating a death and a missing body // as he manages the loss of his partner // one of the first hardboiled mysteries to center on a gay mc and refute stereotypes //

(It was a meme in a wcrp I’m in! Maybe also on here!)

Highly recommend.

In an auspicious event for mystery readers, Syndicate is reprinting all 12 of Joseph Hansen's pioneering Dave Brandstetter novels over 12 months. "Fadeout," the first in the series featuring the comfortably gay World War II vet and L.A. insurance investigator, was published in 1970. As Michael Nava points out in his insightful new introduction, that's when gay sex was a criminal act in 49 of the 50 states. Through grit and sheer talent, Hansen found a wide audience. Nava writes, "It is his art, ultimately, and not simply his subject matter, that makes Joseph Hansen one of the great masters of California noir." Crime fiction fans who don't know Hansen's work are in for a treat."