BOB SHAPIRO, HELLUVA GUY

A New Yorker attempts to recover a valuable statue to save his best friend from thugs in this second installment of Harper’s mystery series.

Paul doesn’t hesitate when his (perhaps only) friend, Bob Shapiro, who procures works of art for private collectors, asks for help. He retrieves an item that Bob stashed in Paul’s old apartment, the current tenants be damned. It’s La Petite Tête, a statue notoriously stolen in Paris years ago. This particular item, however, is a fake—all part of a bluff, since Bob couldn’t get his hands on the genuine article. The ruse doesn’t work, so Paul and Bob, along with the wealthy and dangerous prospective buyer’s two goons, head to Los Angeles to swipe the actual La Petite Tête from a somewhat famous actor. Along for the ride is Katie Spindle, Paul’s next-door neighbor, who apparently gets a kick out of the caper (“I feel so much adrenaline. Like, it’s weeks later and I still feel this...I don’t know. It’s like I’m on edge all the time, or it’s like I suddenly don’t want to put up with shit from anyone”). The risk is indisputable: Three people tied to the statue, in New York and on the West Coast, have been killed, and Paul isn’t exactly sure who pulled the trigger. Harper’s story is chock-full of lighthearted banter that perfectly aligns with Paul’s breezy narration. The protagonist isn’t the sharpest amateur sleuth (Katie is much better at deduction), but his unwavering tenacity does lead him to a resolution that’s equal parts outlandish and convincing. Endearingly, his loyalty to his friend, whom he’s known since childhood, rarely falters, even as both he and Katie debate the possibility that Bob murdered at least one of the victims. The novel’s latter half grows positively exhilarating as it spirals into double-crosses, questionable choices, and various threats.

This offbeat crime story teems with surprises, witticisms, and a memorable cast.