Vermilion — Nathan Aldyne

Two misfit sleuths search for a street hustler's killer in this mystery series debut first published in 1980 and set in Boston's gay scene.

Daniel Valentine is a gay bartender and former social worker. Clarisse Lovelace is his straight pal who works in real estate. They make an unconventional investigative duo -- but sometimes unconventional is exactly what's called for.

When Billy Golacinsky, a teenage street hustler, is found dead on the lawn of a homophobic lawmaker, everyone wants the case swept under the rug. Everyone except Valentine and Lovelace. Now they're combing through Boston's gay scene -- from bars to bath houses -- in a time before AIDS, yet full of other dangers.