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Summary: In the best tradition ofserio-comic mysteries
Review: At last sighting, Leo Gold was happily involved with the love of hislife in Egypt. Now, Leo has returned to the states, visiting theAppalachian town of Hurleyville in the hope of collecting the $5,000 owed to him by a literary client, Bobby Joe Emory. Unbelievable as it may seem, Leo is a literary agent, living in a Harlem dump because everything he owned was destroyed by a maniac in Egypt. Starting at ground zero, Leo cannot afford to take such a big loss. However, his client has been decapitated, so Leo hopes to collect his fee from his step-father, Preston. Leo's timing could not be much worse. He waits in the kitchen for Preston Sherson, who owns the town, to appear so he collect his cash, attend the funeral, and head home. Preston finally comes home after a night on the town, only to tell Leo that they will talk after the funeral. However, soon the Sheriff accuses Leo of killing Bobby Joe. The rest of the town follows suit and close ranks against the outsider. As the noose gets tighter around his neck, Leo realizes that he better find out who the real killer is. Jay Finklestein follows up his superb debut novel SEE NO EVIL with a fabulous tale starring characters straight out of the Eerie, Indiana TV show. This adds much humor to a very gothic oriented story line, thereby keeping it from becoming too dark. Leo is the perfect straight man, who seems to glide in and out of surreal situations like other people drink coffee. IDLE GOSSIP is a fun read due to Leo's reactions, but it is also filled with a rich mystery, making for a wonderful combination that should not be missed. Harriet Klausner
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