SLEEPING DOGS

A high-powered Gibraltarian lawyer cuts short an idyllic vacation to defend a hapless man accused of a brutal murder.

Overworked attorney and sometime sleuth Spike Sanguinetti (Hollow Mountain, 2014, etc.) suffers panic attacks, largely related to the death of his ex, Zahra, three years ago. When his doctor and friend Kitty Gonzalez prescribes a getaway, Corfu turns out to be just what the doctor ordered for Spike and his elderly dad, Rufus. Their getaway estate is next door to that of media mogul Sir Leo Hoffmann, and before long they're rubbing elbows with the wealthy philanthropist. As Spike's odyssey unfolds, it's counterpointed by short glimpses of the imperilment and presumed death of a young woman named Calypso. The colorful characters arriving to fill out the company include Spike's colleague Peter Galliano and DS Jessica Navarro, Spike's old flame, who kindles his ardor anew. While exploring a local cave with the others, Spike discovers the bludgeoned body of Arben, an Albanian who works for Hoffmann. Lakis, a Greek who first greeted Spike and Rufus on their arrival and tended them at the guesthouse, is arrested for the murder after the police learn that he and Arben had been arguing earlier. Spike, who has taken a liking to the helpful Lakis, instinctively rushes to his defense. He begins to investigate, with Jessica playing Nora to his Nick. And how does Calypso fit into it all?

The first half of Spike's fourth rolls slowly. Once its focus shifts to treating its fully drawn characters as suspects, however, it has the satisfying flavor of a classic whodunit.