Tam Buchanan finds his career could be hanging in the balance. His sense of moral responsibility sends him inquiring too closely into the circumstances of the apparently accidental death of client Vanessa Grassick. With Vanessa being the wife of influential advocate Lawrence Grassick, known in the legal community as 'Genghis', even the unconventional Fizz knows it would be unwise to cross him. The official investigation having determined it was an accident, Grassick shows every appearance of threatening to burst a blood vessel when Buchanan notifies him he is making some inquiries of his own into Vanessa's death.
The novel is written with Joyce Holms' distinctive and lively style, which transfers well to the medium of audio. Although originally Buchanan's case, Fizz gets herself involved, through a mixture of curiosity and a genuine desire to help Buchanan. They initially agree she should stay out of Grassick's way for the sake of her own career but of course, the best laid plans don't always work out. In the course of the inquiry, she manages to get herself pretty well fed through stops for dinner and also gets some satisfaction in working with the charming insurance investigator, Giles Cambridge, somewhat to Buchanan's irritation.
James Bryce conveys the distinctive personalities of each character as he reads, drawing out the book's strengths. One who particularly sticks in the memory is Vanessa's business partner, Rudyard, a man so whiney and depressing, he leaves one wondering whether it would be better to shoot him or oneself.
It doesn't take long to become involved in the plot, while the atmosphere is pitched perfectly, whether the moment is tense or humourous. I particularly liked Joyce's touch of giving one of the bad guys a migraine attack at an inconvenient moment. A nice ordinary touch with major implications. As a sufferer myself, I had no trouble in relating to the description of how he felt, though I've never washed down the painkillers with whisky!
A thoroughly enjoyable novel, funny, complex and suspenseful. Definitely a
good companion on a long journey.
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Mary Andrea Clarke
Earlier books in the series are, Payment Deferred, Foreign Body, Bad Vibes,
Thin Ice, Mr Big and Hot Potato.