PI Vincent Rubio has been on a downward spiral ever since his partner was killed in a so-called hit-and-run accident, drunk, washed-up, nearly bankrupt. But maybe his luck is turning, as he is offered a chance on a fire insurance investigation. If only he can keep off the basil long enough. Basil? Yup -- that's because Rubio, like about 5% of the population, is actually a dinosaur, passing for human inside his latex body suit.
This is a competent enough tongue-in-cheek hard-boiled detective yarn, with the dinosaur sub-culture woven in. But it's more grimy detective than surreal dino, and since I'm more an SF than detective story fan, it just doesn't quite work for me. That's why it ranks as a "6" from me: not because there is anything actually wrong with the story, it's just not my cup of tea, so I didn't bother to read past chapter 3.