Rubber Soul
In his fifth novel (after Mojo Hand, 1999), veteran rocker Kihn, who had a string of hits in the ’70s and ’80s, continues to spin light mysteries with a musical theme. Ambitious businessman “Dust Bin” Bob Dingle, who runs a secondhand shop on Penny Lane, makes the acquaintance of four Liverpudlians named John, Paul, Ringo, and George. Bob’s stint as a merchant marine with semimonthly ports of call in Baltimore, Maryland, has given him access to a wealth of R & B records, and the Beatles impress Bob with their ability to pick up and flawlessly execute the material after a couple of listens. When they invite him along to their raucous gigs in Hamburg, during which they play for hours at a time, the result is a new burst of growth for the band and their high-energy stage performances. But Bob’s violent stepbrothers have it in for the young musicians, a grudge that culminates in Manila during the height of Beatlemania. Kihn well captures the enthusiasm and joy generated in the early years of the supergroup, and boomers, especially, will enjoy reliving those heady days. --Joanne Wilkinson