The Doll with the Sad Face: The Adventures of a Family Man Private Detective

Private Detective Mike Sullivan is fighting to save his family detective agency. As he enters middle-age, the flow of new assignments has slowed to a trickle. The forces against him include a worldwide recession, and the loss of his well-heeled clients. He fears for the future of his wife and two kids. After decades of high-stakes investigation, he is forced to take whatever work he can find. Sullivan does not fit the mold of world-weary detectives but can be as tough as any of them when it comes to taking on difficult assignments and caring for his family. His work takes him from gritty Chicago neighborhoods to North Shore mansions and quiet farms. His clients range from top law firms in lofty offices to storefront lawyers struggling to make a buck, along with desperate folks and their unique needs. Sullivan strives to keep his agency solvent, aided by two extraordinary assistants and the cops and fellow detectives who make up his world. It's not a world of murders, gun battles or high-speed chases but it can be a dark world all the same. Sullivan sheds light on corporate crime, personal tragedies and institutional injustice. After years of success, he finds himself fighting harder than ever to serve his clients and save his family.