Whirlpool

A tourist fishing for Adirondack trout hooks the body of a murdered millionaire. The trout are done in by a chemical spill. An unfortunate hiker catches a shotgun blast in the chest. All these misdeeds are connected, of course, and New York State Trooper Garwood Plunkett must defy his superiors to sort them out. Plunkett has trouble keeping a clear head because the millionaire's widow, Percy Quinnell, is an old flame who dumped him 20 years ago to marry the millionaire. Suspicion falls on Percy, since she has much to gain by her husband's death and sheds no tears for him. Intent on outmaneuvering her late husband's partner (who may have mob ties) for control of the Quinnell business, she joins forces with aging investment-scam legend Ivor Rhys to create a scheme worthy of Paul Erdman characters. Plunkett, meanwhile, gets too close to the truth about several crimes and finds himself marked for death. Estabrook (Bahama Heat) skillfully directs a devious cast in this gripping page-turner marked by its strong evocation of rural New York in a hot summer and by the likable, laconic Plunkett. (Oct.)