Reviews

Fans of Brady Coyne will be rewarded once again by the seventh adventure of the Boston lawyer-sleuth. This time Brady is consulted by private eye Les Katz, who was hired by a woman who suspected her husband of having an affair. Katz took incriminating photos that he sold to the husband; now he is worried about the ramifications of his small-time blackmail. When Katz is killed in a hit-and-run accident, Brady is determined to find out if it was murder. His investigation leads to a money-laundering scheme involving high figures in the financial world and the leader of organized crime in New England. In developing the case, Brady finds complications of the heart as compelling as clues: still trying to define the relationship with Gloria, his former wife, he is fast drawn into an attachment with Katz's widow that is closer than he anticipated. The case is wrapped up in a suspenseful conclusion that brings Brady near death in the snow-covered hills outside Boston; his love life is not so easily resolved. With his ready and particular brand of reluctant courage, Coyne grows more interesting with each appearance. (September)