This semiserious, often disjointed caper, the second in British author Whitelaw's new series (after 2000's Pray and Die), takes the reader through multiple rambling investigations, most of which seem pointless even after they're finally resolved. Different clients present PI Jordan Lacey with three separate problems: stolen water lilies, a missing wedding cake and an errant husband. Lacey has trouble focusing on any of these conundrums because she has various distractions of her own, including an infatuation with a local police investigator and a compelling desire to possess a certain "ladybird" motorcar inconveniently owned by one of her customers. At times Lacey's personal problems seem to overwhelm her professional duties, as when her asthma drives her from pubs, and near poverty forces her to sell trinkets from a storefront below her one-room flat. She seeks stress relief by walking along the waterfront in her West Sussex village of Latching, where we are treated to scenic views of the sea during autumn storms and winter blows. Matters turn even more serious when Lacey herself becomes a suspect in Detective Inspector James's investigation of two arson cases involving her clients. Interactions among the many characters in these cases confuse both the heroine and her reader, and after 16 chapters she exclaims, "It was time to wind up these cases. Their convolutions were strangling me." No argument with that, but before we get to the windup, we must endure a long-winded confession from a culprit who was rarely mentioned before the final mea culpa. (Feb.)
