Vanishing Act

Retired police chief Joe DiGregorio juggles a relationship with his entrepreneurial girlfriend and a new job as a Manhattan PI in this tame follow-up to False Faces . When he reads about the death of cut-rate clothing czar George Samson, Joe D. surmises that Samson is the man whose anonymous request to stage his fake murder the PI recently turned down. Joe D. contacts the tycoon's second-in-command, who hires him to find the killer. Suspects include Samson's spendthrift wife; his niece, a talentless artist; and her lover, who turns out to be the son of a merchant whom Samson forced out of business. Convinced that Samson found someone else to carry out his phony-murder scheme, Joe D. conducts an investigation in which Margolis's extensive manipulation of the clues will keep even the most willing armchair detectives from suspending their disbelief. All those questioned give Joe D. an honest answer, even when they have every reason to lie, and readers will unravel the crucial plot twist long before Joe D. does. Snappy dialogue and the protagonist's personal problems enliven but can't save this disappointing sequel. ( Mar. )