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评论 (4)
出版社周刊评论
From its first few pages, Freedman's third novel (after Against the Wind) offers readers the feeling that they're in the hands of a writer who can tell a good story and give them a protagonist worth caring about. Freedman takes the premise of what might be called the classic California mysterya powerful monied family with a closet full of skeletonsand dresses it up in a swath of current fashions, including offshore oil drilling, battered wives and drug smuggling. The result is an exciting modern thriller with a classic feel, thanks in no small part to a spunky, all-too-human heroine who has her own deeply buried reasons for pursuing a case that everyone is telling her to drop. Ex-cop Kate Blanchard, now a Santa Barbara detective, is hired by Laura Sparks after her boyfriend, who is accused of drug smuggling, hangs himself in jail. Laura, the headstrong daughter of Miranda Sparks, the city's biggest mover and shaker, is convinced that her boyfriend was innocent and that his death was no suicide. She's only half right, but that's enough to make somebody want to kill Katesomebody who is involved with the Sparks family's attempt to cut a secret deal with an oil company to use Sparks land for a slant-drilling operation. Plot, character, writingeverything is top-notch as Kate's dogged pursuit of the truth results in a smart, detailed, fast-moving novel that is rewarding on all levels. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Kirkus评论
A gritty and gripping sins-of-the-fathers tale from Freedman (Against the Wind, 1991, etc.), who this time puts a couple of memorably gutsy ladies center stage. Having resigned from the Oakland PD after being involved in a hostage crisis that left three people dead, Kate Blanchard divorces her brutally abusive husband (a fellow cop) and moves to Santa Barbara in search of a fresh start. With wise counsel from a retired investigator whose practice she takes over, the 40ish Kate sets up shop as a p.i. Retained by wealthy young Laura Sparks to probe the apparent suicide of Frank Bascombe, who died in the local jail while awaiting arraignment on drug charges, the fledgling sleuth soon learns she may be out of her depth. In addition to being Laura's lover, Bascombe was foreman at the vast ranch owned by the Sparks family, and the old-money clan wants to put a quick lid on his death for fear it could sully their good name. Particularly keen on keeping Kate at bay is Miranda Sparks, Laura's mother. A calculating sexual predator who takes her pleasures where she finds them (thanks to the impotence of a beloved but feckless husband), Miranda has been entrusted by matriarch Dorothy with the stewardship of the family's presumably substantial holdings. But undaunted by pointed warnings and a severe beating, Kate keeps digging. She finally discovers that Miranda is, literally, in bed with the representative of an international oil company that wants to slant-drill into the scenic channel--anathema in environmentally correct Santa Barbara. Kate also identifies other players with sinister agendas of their own. The case she would not drop eventually resolves itself in a shocking, violent, and cathartic climax. Plucky Kate and lusty Miranda are irresistible creations in their absorbing if occasionally melodramatic duel, set in an agreeably complex coastal eden: an immensely entertaining read. (Literary Guild featured alternate)
《书目》(Booklist)书评
Former Oakland cop Kate Blanchard has hung out her private-detective shingle in Santa Barbara after a bitter divorce cost her her job, her self-respect, and the custody of her two teenage daughters. Laura Sparks, the scion of the county's oldest, wealthiest family, hires Kate to look into the death of her lover, Frank Bascomb. Frank had been the foreman of her family's ranch until he died in the county jail after being arrested for smuggling marijuana through the family's private dock. Laura's mother, Miranda, wants Kate and Laura to drop their investigation, so as not to disrupt a lucrative oil deal involving the family's land. Kate is thorough and conscientious and nearly winds up dead for her efforts. This excellent crime novel is very much in the Ross Macdonald tradition of old California money in deep trouble. Blanchard is a fascinating new detective, seriously flawed but always human; unfortunately, the last chapter seems to preclude her from being a series character. This would be a loss for all fans of the detective novel. --George Needham
《图书馆杂志》(Library Journal )书评
After a shattering hostage situation, Kate Blanchard leaves the Oakland Police Department and an abusive cop husband for what she hopes will be a quieter life as a private investigator in Santa Barbara. However, when Laura Sparks, the youngest of the aristocratic Sparks women, hires Kate to investigate her boyfriend's suicide, Kate discovers how violent and deadly the rich and powerful can be. Their patronage extends from local politicians to multinationals. Drugs, land deals, murder for hire, the Mexican mafia, and Vegas highfliersall seem to have some bearing on this simple suicide. Kate finds the charm of the women as strong as their appetites, which are voracious if discreet. Freedman (Against the Wind, LJ 9/15/91) puts a feminist twist on the California P.I. novel in the tradition of Ross MacDonald and Raymond Chandler. For most popular collections.Ann Donovan, Clearwater P.L., Fla. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.