Damned by Logic

Copywriter David Ansell feels trapped in an unsatisfying career and marriage in this absorbing stand-alone from British author Ashford (Justice Deferred). A new assignment—to create an advertising campaign for client Rex Cruising Company—gives him some reason for hope. Ansell joins the Helios, a ship on a Mediterranean cruise, where he meets Melanie Caine, a prostitute being used as a diamond-smuggling mule. When Melanie twigs that she’s been made, she seduces Ansell and uses him to unknowingly offload the diamonds, intending to claim them later. It’s a fatal mistake, and one that soon has Melanie in trouble with her handlers and Ansell trapped in a web of his own lies. While Det. Insp. Glover focuses on Ansell as his sole suspect in two deaths, only contrarian Det. Constable Belinda Draper believes Ansell might be innocent. The engaging byplay between Glover and Draper and some nifty police work highlight Ashford’s clever resolution. (July)