Declan's Cross

Uneven pacing weakens an otherwise solid mystery in Negger's third Sharpe and Donovan novel (after 2012's Heron's Cove). FBI agents Emma Sharpe and Colin Donovan become concerned when their friend Julianne Maroney travels to the Irish village of Declan's Cross to recover from a difficult breakup. Emma, a nun-turned-art crimes specialist, believes Julianne's visit is connected to a famous, unsolved case of art theft that took place at Declan's Cross a decade earlier. After Julianne's new acquaintance in the village, Lindsey Hargreaves, is found dead, Emma and Colin fear that the thief has returned and turned violent. Amorous troubles accompany the investigation: Emma and Colin struggle with their new romantic relationship; Julianne obsesses over ex-boyfriend Andy Donovan; and Sean Murphy, an Irish policeman, fights to earn Kitty O'Byrne's forgiveness. Lovers of travel will particularly enjoy the detailed forays into Irish culture and geography. Neggers's engaging, straightforward prose mostly makes up for a plot that slows to a standstill for more than 100 pages, divesting both the romantic and investigative storylines of any urgency. (Sept.)