The lady in distress is a lovely Ojibwa woman whom Alex McKnight finds difficult to resist. Never mind that the ex-Detroit cop has promised himself to stay out of the “distress” business in the wake of an earlier adventure (A Cold Day in Paradise, 1998) that ended dismally. Dorothy Parrish clearly needs protection. Moreover, Lonnie Bruckman, the predator in question, is an arrogant, merciless specimen Alex wouldn’t mind crossing. And then, of course, there’s the winter cold in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula’so bitter and punishing that it would take a flintier heart than Alex’s to leave anyone out in it. So he puts Dorothy in one of the empty cabins he usually rents out to snowmobilers, tabling long-range plans until the morning. But by then Dorothy’s gone, abducted, Alex is sure, by the detestable Bruckman. Thus, the game’s afoot'Alex tracking Dorothy, which means Bruckman, which, suddenly, means mysterious strangers tracking Alex. Turns out that Dorothy has a mysterious white canvas bag that powerful people have lost and will kill to retrieve. Alex doesn’t know what’s in it, and doesn’t really care. All he wants is Dorothy safe. Eventually, he gets what he wants'and a lot of what he doesn’t: several of the most notable beatings since early Dick Francis. In his second outing, Hamilton continues to show promise. His protagonist is likable as well as durable, his raffish cast sharply observed and entertaining. Moreover, he knows how to pace a story, something of a lost art in recent crime fiction. (Author tour)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-312-25295-1
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Dunne/Minotaur
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2000
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An anodyne visit with Tricia and her friends and enemies hung on a thin mystery.
Too much free time leads a New Hampshire bookseller into yet another case of murder.
Now that Tricia Miles has Pixie Poe and Mr. Everett practically running her bookstore, Haven’t Got a Clue, she finds herself at loose ends. Her wealthy sister, Angelica, who in the guise of Nigela Ricita has invested heavily in making Stoneham a bookish tourist attraction, is entering the amateur competition for the Great Booktown Bake-Off. So Tricia, who’s recently taken up baking as a hobby, decides to join her and spends a lot of time looking for the perfect cupcake recipe. A visit to another bookstore leaves Tricia witnessing a nasty argument between owner Joyce Widman and next-door neighbor Vera Olson over the trimming of tree branches that hang over Joyce’s yard—also overheard by new town police officer Cindy Pearson. After Tricia accepts Joyce’s offer of some produce from her garden, they find Vera skewered by a pitchfork, and when Police Chief Grant Baker arrives, Joyce is his obvious suspect. Ever since Tricia moved to Stoneham, the homicide rate has skyrocketed (Poisoned Pages, 2018, etc.), and her history with Baker is fraught. She’s also become suspicious about the activities at Pets-A-Plenty, the animal shelter where Vera was a dedicated volunteer. Tricia’s offered her expertise to the board, but president Toby Kingston has been less than welcoming. With nothing but baking on her calendar, Tricia has plenty of time to investigate both the murder and her vague suspicions about the shelter. Plenty of small-town friendships and rivalries emerge in her quest for the truth.
An anodyne visit with Tricia and her friends and enemies hung on a thin mystery.Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-9848-0272-9
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Berkley
Review Posted Online: May 26, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2019
A murder is committed in a stalled transcontinental train in the Balkans, and every passenger has a watertight alibi. But Hercule Poirot finds a way.
**Note: This classic Agatha Christie mystery was originally published in England as Murder on the Orient Express, but in the United States as Murder in the Calais Coach. Kirkus reviewed the book in 1934 under the original US title, but we changed the title in our database to the now recognizable title Murder on the Orient Express. This is the only name now known for the book. The reason the US publisher, Dodd Mead, did not use the UK title in 1934 was to avoid confusion with the 1932 Graham Greene novel, Orient Express.
Pub Date: Feb. 28, 1934
ISBN: 978-0062073495
Page Count: -
Publisher: Dodd, Mead
Review Posted Online: Sept. 20, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1934
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