a novel by
Richard Paloma
(Helm Publishing, ISBN 0-9723011-3-5)

The Beach Club is fiction, but every principal scene in it is real. There are strong action scenes surrounded by equally strong scenes of police humor and wit. The novel is a frolic of maverick and freewheeling cops in their quest to identify and apprehend a sexual predator, internal challenges of morality and commitment as well as overcoming interference by department administrators.

Officer Vincent Patrone, Detective Ray Depietro, and the rest of the Eden Valley Police swing shift are plunged into the midst of the pursuit for a serial rapist that plagues the California city. To compound matters, Lt. Alex Santos, a headhunting-backstabbing administrator who is pursuing the chief’s job, exploits the mishaps of the shift to use to his advantage. Despite Santos’ belief that the shift is out of control, they are actually a group of high performers who in the end, identify and capture the rapist

The title is taken from the police slang term “beach time,” the common phrase for a suspension without pay, during which the officer is said to spend the time off at the beach. Most of the officers in the novel have had controversial dealings with Santos and have a disciplinary suspension in their personnel file. Because of these encounters, the swing shift is nicknamed “The Beach Club.”

The book provides a comical and entertaining account into the adventures of the characters. The night shift officers work as a well-oiled machine as they handle incidents of fleeing felons, auto thieves, arsons, and pursuing the rapist as he terrorizes their suburban city. The officers find humor at the on-duty mishaps of their shift mates, the politics of the department as well as their off-duty antics. Patrone battles personal demons of helplessness and sympathy toward the victims he encounters while contending with his own morality.

Richard Paloma reveals a behind the scenes look at the dark humor and aggravations of being a uniformed police officer. He uses his years of experience as a patrol officer and police detective to capture the camaraderie, challenges, and internal politics within law enforcement today. The Beach Club will keep you entertained start to finish as you get to know the members of the Eden Valley Police Department.