A Fine Italian Hand: A Shifty Lou Anderson Mystery

Rating:
Summary: hifty takes his act to Italy.
Review: A delightful romp for Shifty in his beloved Italy. Surrounded by his favorite things, fast horses, flashy women, and fine food, Shifty finds himself once again unable to walk away from trouble. He meets up with a enchanting series of characters; a wealthy magaician "wannabe", a struggling American model, an elfish "papparazza", a self-centered playboy of enormous wealth and power, as well as a sly and crafty female district attorney with a very special agenda. Shifty has a chance to turn the tables in a no-limits poker game but soon finds the tables turned on him in one of the best surprise endings in the series to date. Even though Shifty leaves all his cronies at home for this trip you'll find that they're not even missed. Another fine installment in a thoroughly entertaining series.

Rating:
Summary: hifty takes his act to Italy.
Review: A delightful romp for Shifty in his beloved Italy. Surrounded by his favorite things, fast horses, flashy women, and fine food, Shifty finds himself once again unable to walk away from trouble. He meets up with a enchanting series of characters; a wealthy magaician "wannabe", a struggling American model, an elfish "papparazza", a self-centered playboy of enormous wealth and power, as well as a sly and crafty female district attorney with a very special agenda. Shifty has a chance to turn the tables in a no-limits poker game but soon finds the tables turned on him in one of the best surprise endings in the series to date. Even though Shifty leaves all his cronies at home for this trip you'll find that they're not even missed. Another fine installment in a thoroughly entertaining series.

Rating:
Summary: Psychopaths and sleight of hand
Review: In his ninth adventure, Shifty Lou Anderson, magician, card sharp and horse player, attends a magician's convention in Milan and sticks around for crime solving.

When a naive American would-be model is found raped and beaten nearly to death, the list of suspects is small and headed by a playboy psychopath from a very rich, crooked and protected family. But the Italian police seem determined to pin the crime on a pair of car thieves. Shifty, hired by the girl's father, does some investigating of his own with the help of an independent, eccentric and sexy Italian photographer.

While the plot does not move at lightning speed and some readers may anticipate the resolution, Shifty is an entertaining and crafty protagonist and the Italian setting is well realized ? especially the food.