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Rating:  Summary: Lead so I can follow Review: As a fan of the Carl Wilcox series and having read all the previous novels, the author has done his readership damage by marrying Carl off! Part of the glamor of this series has been the sort of sexiness of a well-meaning, intelligent bachelor who solves murders in very interesting and creative ways in an era before today's technology. Carl has shown his interest in women through out the series and that idea of romance draws the reader in. As a female, his allure as a bachelor detective took me in -- always wondering about whether there would be a conquest or not. For me, the best Harold Adams can do is write out Hazel, Carl's wife, in some calamity that Carl can deal with and solve!
Rating:  Summary: A pleasant trip out with Carl Wilcox, but lacks oomph. Review: Harold Adams has written a tremendous series of books about Depression era bum/detective Carl Wilcox. This is not his best, but if you love the series and like Wilcox, the book is fun to read.First time readers should start further back in the series. In this one there is no real "bad guy" to hate; Wilcox is married(!) and on his honeymoon.... this leaves setting and writing style as the major draws. They work for me, because I like the series, but would probably not sell a first time reader.
Rating:  Summary: Where's the Beef? Review: In mystery writing--as in all fiction writing--when you pull apart the hardcover buns, there should be a sizeable slab of conflict inside. Sure, depending on how the author or readers like it, condiments such as plot, characterization, and blah, blah, blah, can be added to enhance taste. But conflict is the "beef" of all fiction. Harold Adams' book has small meat. The writing is tight, the history and scenic descriptions accurate and well-done, but everyone gets along. A stranger dies in the beginning, but no one is ever threatened again. The protagonist gets along with his wife, the local cops, the local residents, even the suspects. What's the point? There's no urgency. I only turned the pages out of curiosity to find out when something good might start happening. It didn't. Okay. I'm exaggerating. The book is not that bad. Give it three stars. Lovers of pure whodunits may give it four. But for me this was no Whopper. --Christopher Bonn Jonnes, author of Wake Up Dead.
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