GIOTTOS HAND : A Jonathan Argyll Mystery

Rating:
Summary: It is okay but Pears has written better
Review: General Taddeo Bottando believes that the stealing of many of Europe'spriceless works of art since 1963 is the result of one person, an extremelyskillful thief, dubbed Giotto. The General assigns his brilliant team, the Art Theft Squad, to investigate the possibility that one person is responsible for numerous thefts. Private investigator Flavia di Stefano and art dealer Jonathan Argyll begin the search for the elusive Giotto. ....... The first real clue is a letter from a dying woman who describes one of the robberies. Using that as a lead, Stefano searches Florence for follow-up information while Argyll travels all over England. Though they begin to put together the pieces of a four decade old puzzle, General Bottando's greatest opponent, Corrado Argan, raises a stink about the waste of money in pursuit of a ridiculous objective. Corrado believes that no one man could have committed all these crimes without a trace. It is up to the Art Theft Squad to prove their leader is right and bring to justice a grandmaster. ........ Though all three lead characters are charming and very endearing, GIOTTO'S HAND seems a bit flat for mystery lovers since there is little life threatening action confronting the squad. There is little doubt that Iain Pears' love for art oozes off of the pages to reach out and touch readers. In spite of this extra flavoring and great characterization, the who-done-it remains a bit weak. .......Harriet Klausner