Not having read the first Valentino Mystery, I was a little confused for the first chapter or two until I got the cast of characters down. After that the book moved along and was quite good. Valentino reminded me a little bit of a Stuart Kaminski character Toby Peters. I liked the interplay of story lines with Garbo, Mr. Rankin, Valentino's girlfriend and his attempts to get the Oracle remodeled and open again. I will definitely try to get a copy of the first Valentino Mystery to read and look forward to future books with this character. It seems as if there are many avenues for further adventures for Valentino. Thanks for the opportunity to review this book. ( )

"Alone" is the second of a series. The main character,Valentino, is a collector and restorer of old films. This is a fun series with lots of information about old movie stars. This book centers around lost letters of Greta Garbo. Even if your not a film lover, I think you would enjoy this book ( )

A quick fun read. A mystery with a little history thrown in. I have never been interested in Garbo, but this book has made me want to dig a little further and find out why so many people are enchanted by her. The core charecters in this book seem like old friends, I can't wait to read more. I guess the good thing is that there is a previous book I can hunt down and read until newer ones are published. ( )

I’m not sure if Alone is better than Estleman’s first novel in his Valentino series, Frames (2008); but I do know that Alone is an excellent read. The Valentino character is one that Estleman himself says he is surprised that no writer created before him. Estleman revealed that the inspiration for Valentino came from Kevin Brownlow, the film writer and archivist. Like Brownlow, Valentino is a film archivist and film sleuth who hunts for lost classic movies. He is also attempting to rebuild a vintage movie palace in Los Angeles. Valentino this time gets involved in a seemingly cut-and-dried murder involving a wealthy man who owns a rare copy of an early advertising film Greta Garbo made as a teenager before coming to the United States.
Rankin, a rich Garbo insider (the Swedish actress and his wife were close friends) wants Valentino to dig into the background of an assistant who is blackmailing him, with Valentino’s reward being a copy of the rare Garbo film. Rankin soon shoots and kills the assistant in apparent self-defense, spends some time in jail, but is released partly because of Valentino’s efforts. Of course, it all gets more complicated after that with forged and real Garbo-written letters and a cop who won’t quit investigating the murder. It is a tidy mystery, but the real draw is Estleman’s outpouring of his knowledge of Garbo and classic films, which really never gets in the way of the story, but at the same time adds depth and a degree of verisimilitude to the undertaking. Reading Alone made me rush out and get a copy of the silent film The Temptress, Garbo second U.S. film, and after watching it, I’m glad I did because seeing the film added to my appreciation of Alone and reading Alone added to my appreciation of the film.
The cast of secondary characters is also quite good, and I think all but one of them is extremely well done. Valentino has serious interactions with his mentor and his girlfriend, a forensic specialist who works like a real one not the unreal kind populating CSI. Estleman also uses subtle and sometimes not so subtle humor throughout. The bottom line is that the reader gets an entertaining mystery populated with believable characters as well as a primer on Greta Garbo.
Estleman is the author of some 60 novels including a 20-book private eye series featuring Amos Walker, numerous Westerns, including the Murdock series, a group of Detroit historicals, a hit-man series and other works. He has also published many short stories. And all of his stuff is good.
More Valentino is also on the way. Crippen and Landru will publish a collection of the dozen or so Valentino short stories that have appeared in “Ellery Queen Magazine.” And Estleman recently said that he is halfway through writing the third Valentino novel. ( )

"Alone" is a delightful mid-winter read about a murder mystery surrounding Greta Garbo's letters to a possible lesbian lover. It takes place in Hollywood and the central character is Valentino, who owns the Oracle, a vintage movie house currently undergoing a renovation. His girlfriend Harriet, a forensic technician, and his friend Kyle, a professor, also get swirled up in the mystery and provide comic relief. My only disappointment was the Perry Mason-type confessional ending which did not ring true. But I would recommend the book for mystery buffs who are looking for a non-taxing diversional read and who enjoy the world of film. ( )