PI Jake Diamond, abetted by his Girl Friday, Darlene, sleuths back and forth between San Francisco, Chicago and L.A. in his third outing (after 2003's Clutching at Straws
), a convoluted but routine mystery involving a decades-old crime and Mafia vendetta lists. After a nice opening line, parodying classic hard-boiled detective fiction—"The scent of deep-fried calamari floated in through my office window like an invitation to triple-bypass surgery"—Abramo soon loses narrative focus. The witty remarks (e.g., "If you want someone who can't ask a good question, get Larry King") simply disappear, and the tone grows serious. As the plan to topple the bad guy plays out, the first-person Chandleresque burlesque is dropped in favor of a detached third-person account more like a thriller novel. Fans of Mafiosi fiction should be the most satisfied. (Aug. 20)
