The Man Who Liked to Look at Himself

Rating:
Summary: Mario Balzic in a good case of methodical police work
Review: After one novel things must have been too comfortable for Police Chief Mario Balzic in the Western Pennsylvania town of Rocksburg because K. C. Constantine jettisons Lt. Phil Moyer of the State Police in favor of Lt. Harry Minyon. Whereas Moyer was inclined to back up Balzic in his investigations, Minyon is another constant pain in the nether regions in the mode of D.A. Milt Weigh and local reporter Dick Deitz, both of whom are noticeably absent from this second volume. For that matter most of the supporting cast from 'The Rocksburg Railroad Murders' are missing this time around, such as Father Mazzo, Balzic's mom, and his young girls. The most important familiar face in the novel turns out to be Mo Vulcanas, the inebriated Greek lawyer. But then 'The Man Who Like to Look at Himself' is much more of a solo effort for the chief than the first time around. If Constantine is retooling these novels that is not going to be clear until I start reading the next one, which will be right after I finish writing this review.

Hopefully you pick this book up in paperback, because the cover of the original hardback edition makes a concerted effort to spoil the mystery by having a photograph of the key piece of evidence that allows all the pieces to fall into place for Balzic in the final stage of the story. The significance of the novel's title is not clear until that point and the only reason I am not screaming and hollering about this more than I am is that I went directly from reading the first book to the second without bothering to look at the cover; the title on the side of the spine was all I needed to know I had grabbed the right book off the shelf at the local library.

Balzic and Minyon are out hunting pheasant and the day goes from bad (Minyon's dog bites Balzic and the only thing he shoots is a starling with a broken wing) to worse when the dog uncovers a piece of human bone that shows clear markings of having been hacked apart. More bones pop up and the common denominator is that they are all found on farms when the Rocksburg Rod and Gun Club, although not enough to allow for an identification of the remains. And if Balzic does not have enough problems, Reverend Callum is complaining to the City Council about the racist policies of the local police. Minyon goes off on a series of wild tangents trying to break the case and see his name in the papers, while Balzic takes a more methodical (and more intelligent) approach. 'The Man Who Liked to Look at Himself' is good old-fashioned detective work, when asking questions from various people eventually gets Balzic in the right place at the right time to ask the right question to the right person. Given what happened at the end of the first novel, you cannot help but approach the conclusion of this one with concern over what horrible final twist of fate might intrude upon the denouement.

The mystery elements are much stronger in this second Balzic story, but the chief attraction remains the main character, who continues to care about people as well as solving the crime. Constantine has created a character who is a good cop and a decent man. I read a description of Balzic from the 'Washington Star' that described him as 'unpretentious, unsentimentalized, uncaricatured,' which certainly hits the nail on the head all three times. In this novel the obstacles to Balzic's investigation are mostly offstage and it is more a question of Minyon catching up to what really happened before the Lieutenant makes another stupid mistake. This is not a mystery where you have to dodge red herring right and left, but one in which the hero works his way slowly and methodically to the truth. These book are good reads for those of us living the commuter lifestyle, but be forewarned that Constantine does not believe in chapters and plan your life accordingly.

Rating:
Summary: A good sophomore effort
Review: Constantine's second (if I have my facts straight) Mario Balzic mystery, _The Man Who Liked To Look At Himself_ is as good as his debut.

Like _The Rocksburg Railway Murders_, this book centers about Balzic, the chief of police in a small Pennsylvania town. Parts of a body are found on farms which are leased as hunting lands by a local hunting club.

It's not long before Balzic has figured out the identity of the victim, but pinning the murder on the killer is another matter. Again, sharp attention to detail and a good appreciation for local color make Constantine's writing so special. He really gets the small town cop character right. Or, at least, I think he does. It sure has the ring of truth.

Characters such as the defense attorney Mo Valcanas reappear in this book. They're certainly welcome; Balzic isn't the only interesting character from the first novel. I'm hoping for a reappearance of the priest character from the railway murders novel. The priest was my favorite character, aside from Mario, in the debut. I don't recall the priest having any role in this book.

The title seems unrelated to the story, until late in the novel, when it's presented by Balzic himself in a clever turn of the plot.

All in all, this is a good small-town police-chief murder mystery.