A DEADLY VINEYARD HOLIDAY

An early morning session of casting for bluefish brings a new adventure to the not-so-quiet life of J.W. Jackson (Death on a Vineyard Beach, 1996, etc.)—once a member of Boston's PD, now eking out a living on Martha's Vineyard with adored wife Zee, a nurse at the local hospital. The morning's fishing is interrupted by the appearance of Cricket Callahan, the daughter of the President. Cricket is sick of the security guard that watches her every move—especially right now, in the wake of a series of threatening letters. When her parents agree to let her stay with J.W. and Zee for the last days of their holiday, J.W. speculates, correctly, that there are suspicions of a threat within the vacation White House itself. Cricket, renamed Debby, disguised with glasses and a new hairdo, is now J.W.'s cousin from Virginia, visiting with sister Karen (her bodyguard). As Debby and Karen do all the fun things teenagers do, J.W. puts his mind to tracking down the source of the threatening letters. Matters are soon complicated by the murder of a tabloid reporter in the woods near J.W.'s house. With the help of FBI man Jake Spitz and ex-government agent Joe Begay (an old Vietnam buddy), J.W. finally comes up with some pretty bizarre answers. A leisurely guide to the Vineyard, complete with instructions on fishing, climbing, and cooking. Some of the background clarity could have been used to strengthen the jerry-built plot in this comfortable but uncompelling episode.