Murder, mummies and shady real estate dealings haunt this solid entry in Hunter's Ransom series (after 2000's Ransom at the Opera). Real estate baron and Chilean expatriate Louie Dolores brings an exhibit of ancient Chinchorro mummies to his massive downtown Chicago headquarters in an effort to counter some bad press. His image as a high-stakes destroyer of the city's classic architecture is, indeed, in need of philanthropic polish, but some aren't taken in by the ploy. When a "mummy" starts stalking the exhibit, it seems as if even the dead are displeased with Dolores. Chicago P.D. detective Jeremy Ransom, his partner, Gerald White, and grandmotherly confidante Emily Charters are presented with numerous suspects who might want to disrupt the show: Hector Gonzalez, the exhibit's nervous curator; his assistant, Lisa Rivera, whose relationship to the tycoon may be more than businesslike; Dolores's strong, independent wife, Martita; and a host of protesters picketing the exhibit. The mystery is, of course, not whether Dolores will be killed but by whom. The author introduces characters and clues easily and naturally into the story. His eye for details of the urban rich is true, right down to the credenza in Dolores's office and Martita's "pale pink blouse." Though the murder itself doesn't take place until well into the book, Hunter keeps things moving by detailing the thoughts, plans and foibles of his varied cast. Series fans will be well pleased, and even a few mummy buffs should pick this one up, despite the understated jacket art. (Apr. 8)
FYI:Hunter is also the author of
The Chicken Asylum (Forecasts, Sept. 3) and other novels in the Alex Reynolds series.
