Nick's Trip is a 1993 crime novel from author George Pelecanos

George Pelecanos

George P. Pelecanos is a Greek-American author. Many of his works are in the genre of detective fiction and set primarily in his hometown of Washington, D.C. He is also a film and television producer and a television writer...

. It is set in Washington DC and focuses on bartender Nick Stefanos as he investigates the disappearance of a colleague. It is the second of several Pelecanos novels to feature the character and the second book of a trilogy with Stefanos as the main character. The preceding book in this series is A Firing Offense

A Firing Offense

A Firing Offense is a 1992 crime novel and the debut from author George Pelecanos. It is set in Washington DC and focuses on marketing executive Nick Stefanos as he investigates the disappearance of a colleague. It is the first of several Pelecanos novel's to feature the character and the first of...

and the series concludes with Down by the River Where the Dead Men Go

Down by the River Where the Dead Men Go

Down by the River Where the Dead Men Go is the third book of a trilogy by novelist George Pelecanos with the same protagonist, Nick Stefanos. In this volume he has retired from his previous job as a crime investigator in Washington D.C., and makes a living as a bartender at a local bar. He...

.

Plot introduction

Nick Stefanos is a bartender at a neighborhood place called "The Spot". His high-school friend Billy Goodrich asks him to search for his missing wife.

Explanation of the novel's title

The title refers to Nick Stefanos' journeys in the novel both in his past (with Goodrich) and in the present on his investigation.

Characters

Nick Stefanos is now working as a bartender after being fired from his position with electrical goods chain "Nutty Nathan's". He remains friends with his old sales colleague Johnny McGinnes. Billy Goodrich is an old high school friend of Stefanos and the two took an extended road trip together after high school but have since lost touch.

Literary significance and reception

The series as a whole has been described as tightly plotted with "intricacies to rival Hammett

Dashiell Hammett

Samuel Dashiell Hammett was an American author of hard-boiled detective novels and short stories, and political activist. Among the enduring characters he created are Sam Spade , Nick and Nora Charles , and the Continental Op .In addition to the significant influence his novels and stories had on...

 or Chandler

Raymond Chandler

Raymond Thornton Chandler was an American novelist and screenwriter.In 1932, at age forty-five, Raymond Chandler decided to become a detective fiction writer after losing his job as an oil company executive during the Depression. His first short story, "Blackmailers Don't Shoot", was published in...

". The novel is told from a first person perspective like many private investigator stories.