The Case of the Missing Links: A Golf Mystery

There's plenty of foreplay and wordplay in this golfing mystery debut by sports columnist Tyler. Set in California's beautiful Pebble Beach area, the novel features a couple of amorous detectives and an egomaniacal golf-course designer whose plans for the capstone of his career have been stolen. Sleuthing partners Harry ""Win"" Winslow and June Jacobs, two cops turned lovers and private eyes, are hired by designer Sheldon Moore III to locate the missing plans for Skylark and to identify the thief who stole them. Blustery and overbearing, Moore has plenty of suspects for his sleuths to investigate: everyone on his small staff (including his mistress and his former mistress), his wife and other assorted rivals and enemies. And when the theft is overshadowed by a murder, it's no surprise that Moore is the victim. Although Tyler relies heavily on stock characters (the proper butler, the long-suffering wife, the eccentric uncle, the computer nerd, etc.), Win and June are congenial heroes, and the author displays enough wit to make this trip around the links an enjoyable one. (June) FYI: Tyler is a former columnist for the Los Angeles Times and the author of an online newsletter, The Traveling Golfer.