GOTHIC PURSUIT

The author's businessman/art-expert/sleuth Tim Simpson (Whistler in the Dark; 1987; etc.) is on the move again--this time in pursuit of a piece of furniture by 19th century architect-designer Richard Norman Shaw. Alerted to its possible existence by old college chum Toby Prescott, Tim finds the body of Alf Brown, Toby's lead to the prize, and later finds the murdered corpse of small-time Brighton dealer Stan Reilly. Sandwiching his researches between stints for White's, the merchant banking firm that employs him, and aided by girlfriend Sue, Tim finally ferrets out exactly what he's looking for, almost becoming victim number three in the process. An intriguing prologue involving the hazardous 19th-century shipping business is touched upon only peripherally in the story. Pity, It might have provided relief from the pages of esoteric lore on mostly minor architects, artists, and furnituremakers of the 1800's. With snippets of plot scattered about while the author rides his hobby, this fifth Tim Simpson adventure is a boring disappointment.