“Saint Francis of Dogtown is back and this time an old Army buddy leads him to a cache of Hitler’s personal effects that have been stored in a quirky museum in a small town in Illinois. Rottweilers, a voodoo priest and some Irish ballads come together for a fun read ... William Stage might never get an honorary degree from Saint Louis University, but he is the William Shakespeare of our town. Have a glass of Tullamore Dew Irish whiskey and start reading.”

— Bill McClellan, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Why Did I Ever Listen to You?

1991 ST LOUIS — Leo Kraszewski aka Dingus has come to visit his army pal, Francis Lenihan, now a busy process server. It’s been 19 years but Dingus is still the same—impulsive, foolish, quick with a wisecrack, uncouth yet worldly. Dingus leads Francis to Southern Illinois, the town of Bunting, where spoils from World War II—the Speer Collection—may lie hidden in a peculiar private museum. The story has legs as Dingus aka Hercules is given a task by Anselm, the museum’s curator and a stand-in for King Eurystheus of yore, to retrieve a stolen historical artifact. Dingus does Anselm’s bidding, at a dear price. Meanwhile Dingus’ court date for cannabis distribution looms. Will Francis wrangle a lawyer for his penniless friend? Will Dingus negotiate the comedic twists and turns of Fate and retrieve the treasure for his schatzie, Hilde, who waits in Germany?

     A lively cast of characters join in—a high school detective, the next Nancy Drew; a witch doctor cast from the halls of academia, a scholarly recluse, a malevolent sheriff’s deputy, a bawdy masseuse, an angry rapper and his entourage, and the beer-soaked regulars at Murphy’s Tavern in Dogtown St. Louis.

“A Friend of King Neptune is a fun mystery novel with a healthy heaping of comic undertones that provide a generous portion of the entertainment ... The action is often accompanied by moments of levity and heart. Author Wm. Stage has written a fine book with a quirky pair that will win over the reader almost instantly.”

— Philip Zozzaro Seattle Book Review (5 star review)

“Stage is top of the game in both dialogue and humor ... a joy to read.”

— Charlie Stella

February 2022
Designed by Michael Kilfoy, Studio X
ISBN: 978-0-578-52462-7
288 pages

$12.95

Order A Friend of King Neptune