By Robert Francis
Murder Below Montparnasse
By Clara Black
Soho Crime. $25.95 (Rating-Very Good)
Parisian private investigator Aimee Leduc is operating the business her grandfather started. On her office wall is a commendation from the Louvre that the founder of the agency received decades ago for recovering a stolen Degas. Now it is Aimee’s turn to recover a priceless piece of art that has gone missing.
Hired to protect a rare and, until this point, unknown portrait of Lenin by Modigliani, Aimee is unable to fulfill the assignment because the person who owns the work of art is killed and the painting disappears.
With one death following closely on the heels of another, it becomes all too obvious that a number of people are willing to do whatever it takes to retrieve the priceless portrait. In fact, the young sleuth is nearly a victim herself as she tries to locate the Modigliani.
An added twist to this action packed mystery is the involvement Aimee’s own mother has in the theft. On Interpol’s most wanted list for two decades, the woman left her daughter and her husband behind when Aimee was just a child. Now, after all these years, the two women may meet again under very curious circumstances.
San Francisco writer Cara Black knows how to ratchet up the tension as her story heads down the home stretch. Along with creating a riveting thriller, Black has created a rich, atmospheric setting with enough French history to make this a series that delights those who have traveled to Paris and enjoyed the city’s many cultural delights.
The Riptide Ultra-Glide
By Tim Dorsey
William Morrow. $25.99 (Rating-Excellent)
The ultimate, comic anti-hero, serial killer Serge Storms and his sidekick Coleman wade into another improbable situation that has the Florida tourist bureau shuddering.
Wisconsinites Patrick and Barbara McDougal are experiencing a less than restful vacation in the Sunshine State. Their motel is a disappointment, but that’s the least of their problems. When they get caught in the crossfire between the Oxy cartel and the good ole’ boy, Kentucky mafia, the Midwesterners are going to need assistance the local authorities can’t provide.
That’s where Serge comes in. Looking for some “regular folks” to feature in a reality show he’s thinking of producing, Serge decides the McDougals fit the bill perfectly. Of course, that means he’ll have to help them out of the predicament the couple is presently in. If you have followed this series, you know that Serge can be a formidable adversary. The bad guys harassing the McDougals have certainly met their match, but the real question is, would it have been better had the McDougals never met Serge?
Oh yes, when they finally do head back to their home these vacationers will have a wild tale to share with their Cheesehead buddies. Of course, no one will ever believe the part about pelicans being used as murder weapons!
Black Irish
By Stephan Talty
Ballantine. $26 (Rating-Very Good)
More famous for its infamous “lake effect” winter blizzards which have dumped as much as 22 inches of snow on the city in one storm than for its crime headlines, Buffalo, New York, is the focus of the hunt for a serial killer in Stephan Talty’s new novel.
Set in the Irish stronghold of South Buffalo, the story begins as Absalom “Abbie” Kearney returns to the city where her adopted father was one of the area’s most revered and respected police officers. With a Harvard degree and a detective’s badge, Abbie finds it difficult to earn the respect her stepfather received from the members of the community.
When it becomes apparent that a sadistic killer is on the loose, Abbie seizes the opening to prove she can handle the investigation and earn the respect of her colleagues. Unfortunately, at every turn the young woman discovers that a cultural wall of silence blocks her way.
A secretive Irish organization that includes some of the members of the police force is apparently determined to find the killer and mete out its own form of justice before the official inquiry can locate the psychopath.
As even her own family becomes drawn into the intrigue, Abbie realizes that she is not only battling wits with a very clever psychopath but also with a group of individuals who have some deep seated secrets that run generations deep.
If this first novel featuring BPD Decretive Abbie Kearney is an indication of things to come, you’ll want to get in on the ground floor so you’ll be fully familiar with the heroine’s background and personality before she tackles her next case. This is a series that may well make Buffalo famous for something other than the city’s harsh winters!
The Sound of Broken Glass
By Deborah Crombie
William Morrow. $25.99 (Rating-Very Good)
When Defective Inspector Gemma James is assigned the case that involves a well-respected barrister who is found naked, trussed and apparently strangled in a seedy hotel, she’s not sure what to think. Is it murder or a rather unsavory accident?
The discovery of a second body, a junior barrister, found killed in the same manner leaves no question about the situation. Not only is it definitely murder, but it also appears that James has a serial killer on her hands.
While Gemma leads the murder investigation team, her husband, Detective Superintendent Duncan Kincaid, is at home on a leave of absence taking care of the couple’s three-year-old foster daughter. As he follows his wife’s case Duncan realizes he has a personal connection with one of the suspects.
When the young man admits he knows one of the dead men, Duncan believes that not only is this individual a link between the two dead men but he could well be the next victim. Or, on the other hand, he could be the killer!
What follows next is a riveting chain of events that play out in London’s legendary Crystal Palace and makes for a very exciting read. This is another solid outing for this extraordinary husband and wife detective team that has made Deborah Crombie a much admired suspense writer in both the U.S. and Great Britain.
Resurrection Express
By Stephen Romano
Gallery Books. $25 (Rating-Good)
If you are into cyber space thrillers, you’ll want to read this fast paced novel that gives a talented hacker the chance to get out of prison if he uses his skills one more time. Elroy Coffin is more than willing to tackle the challenge if it means his freedom.
But, as one would expect, Coffin has jumped from the frying pan right into the fire. He is now caught up in an underworld struggle between two criminal masterminds. Fleeing for his life, the computer whiz will make some death-defying escapes, but he can’t disengage from “the project” completely because the stakes are way too high. If he does, the very course of history could be altered and thousands of lives will be lost.
High-voltage action makes this a techie adventure that even computer illiterate readers will enjoy.