Great Escapes #1

"R" is for Ricochet, by Sue Grafton

In Kinsey Milhohn time it is 1987, a period which seems a lot simpler than now. Kinsey is doing a little of this and a little of that but she’s got plenty of time to take on what seems at first to be an easy assignment. Reba Lafferty is being released from prison after serving a sentence for stealing money from the company where she worked. Her wealthy elderly father would like Kinsey to pick her up and return her to Santa Teresa and help her get readjusted to society. To Kinsey it sounds like a glorified babysitter job but the money’s good so she signs on. Reba was a wild child and she is just as wild as an adult; Kinsey immediately has her hands full keeping tabs on her. As they spend time together, Kinsey learns that Reba didn’t embezzle the money but, instead, went to prison to protect her boss and her lover, the sleazy Alan Beckworth. Now, however, she has discovered that Alan has been stepping out with someone else and he was just using her. Well, hell hath no fury and Reba is now out to get Alan but good. Unfortunately, she is in way over her head when she decides to bring him down because he has some very nasty business associates who need him right where he is and they won’t hesitate to get rid of Reba. Caught in the middle is Kinsey, who tries to protect Reba—and herself—but ends up an unwilling participant in Reba’s dangerous revenge scheme. This was another Grafton winner and I hate to see her getting close to the end of the alphabet with her series. After all these books Kinsey is like an old friend you enjoy spending time with.

Grace Lawson’s life is going pretty swimmingly. She has a nice home in the suburbs, two cute children--a boy and a girl--and a loving husband. She even has enough time to pursue being a successful artist. Everything’s just great until she picks up a roll of pictures that were developed at the local photo store. The pictures were taken at a family outing to an orchard but in among the family snaps is a strange photo that doesn’t belong. Clearly taken years ago, it shows a group of twentysomething people. One of the three girls in the photo has an ‘x’ marked on her face and, weirdly, one of the two guys looks like her husband Jack. How did this photo come to be with her packet and what does it mean? When she gets home, she shows the photo to Jack. He denies being in the photo--but then he leaves without any warning in the middle of the night and doesn’t return. Suddenly, Grace has a missing husband and a lot more questions. And only an old photograph as a clue. With the photo as a starting point, Grace will uncover events of long ago that will put her and her family in grave danger. This was a nicely done suspense novel that finished a little weakly but was still worth reading.

The Burglar on the Prowl, by Lawrence Block

Our favorite burglar, Bernie Rhodenbarr, is back in fine form in this latest from Block. Bernie, who runs a used bookshop in the daylight hours, is arrested by the police when surveillance cameras put him near the scene of an apartment burglary that turned deadly. Bernie was in the area but he was scouting another house to rob. It was just a coincidence that he happened to be there at the same time. The police have to let him go for lack of evidence but they have put into play what will be the start of a series of coincidences that unfold as Bernie gets caught up in the mystery of the crime he was never involved in. Along to help him sort out the coincidences is his lesbian friend, Carolyn, and together they will wisecrack their way to a solution to the mystery. By more coincidences, a female lawyer will enter the picture as Bernie’s new love interest. I thought the plot got a little confusing at the end but the characters, dialogue, and action made up for it.

Skinny Dip, by Carl Hiaasen

It seems like it has been a long wait for the next Hiaasen book but our patience has been rewarded. Floridians Chaz and Joey Perrone are celebrating their second wedding anniversary with a cruise. As the ship sails off the Florida coast, Chaz unexpectedly throws Joey overboard while they are taking a midnight stroll on deck. There are no witnesses and the ship sails away. Joey loses her clothes on impact with the water but, being a former champion swimmer, she manages to stay afloat until she is able to grab a stray bale of marijuana floating by. Yes, in Carl Hiaasen’s Florida a misplaced bale of marijuana is perfectly logical. Joey, presumed dead by the loathsome Chaz and the authorities, is rescued by Mick Stranahan, a former Miami cop who lives by himself on a small island near Key West. Mick wants Joey to go to the police but she would rather stay ‘dead’ for awhile—at least long enough to plan, along with Mick’s help, a delicious revenge for Chaz. And, it couldn’t happen to a more deserving guy. This was another Hiaasen winner filled with wonderful, weird, wacky Floridians—and one homesick Minnesotan. Don’t miss it.