As usual, Alvarez’s charm overshadows the mystery, and his duels with series regulars are the real rewards.
In a volatile world, Inspector Enrique Alvarez (Seeing is Deceiving, p. 619, etc.) offers the comforts of certitude. Chief Salas still ridicules and hangs up on him; his sister Dolores still browbeats him about his drinking and tries unsuccessfully to find him a suitable wife; and his Mallorcan bailiwick is still breathtakingly beautiful. As to this season’s mystery: The motor cruiser Valhalla, belonging to wealthy former British cabinet minister Keith Vickers, is found drifting off the coast, its womanizing owner now separated as completely from his craft as from his wife Laura. Rosa, Vickers’s housekeeper, reports a recent heated argument between her boss and one Señor Lovell, identified only as an “important member of the British government” (a vague, endlessly repeated description that becomes a comic mantra). Lovell brushes off Alvarez’s questions as unimportant and undeserving of his time, and his advisor and constant companion Esme Dale tries to bully the inspector—a good cop/bad cop routine that only makes Alvarez more suspicious. When Vickers’s body finally washes up onshore with clear evidence of murder, Alvarez plies Lovell with more questions despite tantrums and arguments from Salas, escalating threats from Dale, and the inspector’s interest in other suspects ranging from beautiful redhead Melanie Lockwood (whom Vickers had been doggedly pursuing with little success), indifferent Laura and her local lover Serra, and the handful of servants on the minister’s estate, who run the gamut from sullen to sanguine.
As usual, Alvarez’s charm overshadows the mystery, and his duels with series regulars are the real rewards.Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-312-30745-4
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Minotaur
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2002
An appealing, three-dimensional heroine and some clever plot twists make this an enjoyable, quick read.
In this mystery novel, somebody’s been killing the proprietors of a prestigious inn, and the newest innkeeper is determined to find out why before she becomes the next victim.
Doyle (The Infidelity Pact, 2008, etc.) is a self-described “foodie” and an avid cheerleader for the quaint village of East Hampton, New York, and she indulges both of these passions in this first installment of her new Hamptons Murder Mysteries series. Recently transplanted from California following a nasty divorce, 35-year-old protagonist Antonia Bingham has bought the Windmill Inn from the estate of Gordon Haslett, who died suddenly, apparently from a heart attack. An inventive, passionate chef, Antonia has just reopened the inn’s restaurant when she learns from two of her regulars, Len and Sylvia Powers, that the circumstances surrounding Gordon’s death were suspicious. Worse, he wasn’t the first owner of the inn to experience an untimely death. Now, strange things are happening to Antonia—someone removes a stepladder while she’s installing a light bulb, someone locks her in a supply closet, and more. Her new buddy, Joseph Fowler, a 60-something widower, joins in the amateur sleuthing as they try to sort out the possible motives of a multitude of suspects; Gordon, they discover, was universally disliked. Doyle is an enthusiastic guide for Long Island’s East End village; she details each street and shop, the spectacular beaches, and the unique play of sunlight that has been a siren call to artists for more than a century. She also gives readers plenty of opportunities to vicariously indulge in every mouthwatering bite that Antonia and her restaurant patrons consume—especially if the item is loaded with butter, sugar, or some other comforting dietary no-no. Doyle also pays careful attention to housing décor, wardrobe selections, and the hairstyles of every character, which perhaps stems from her experience as a screenwriter (Intern, 2009). The generally smooth prose maintains a gentle pace, although there are one or two unnecessarily awkward lead-ins, such as “an odd incident occurred that unnerved Antonia and once again gave her pause about her own mortality.” The dinner-table gathering of suspects isn’t an original device, but it’s fun and satisfying nonetheless.
An appealing, three-dimensional heroine and some clever plot twists make this an enjoyable, quick read.Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-9972701-4-3
Page Count: 410
Publisher: Dunemere Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
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BOOK REVIEW
A good one in the tough school, in which private detective Marlowe is hired to investigate a blackmailing and finds himself bucking a well-run gang, several murders, and the D A's office. Hard-boiled, fast paced, plenty of action, some sensationalism. Not for conservatives.
Pub Date: Feb. 5, 1938
ISBN: 0394758285
Page Count: 244
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: March 23, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1938
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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