DP54Cover - Deadly Pleasures

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Deadly Pleasures
A A BEVY BEVY OF
OF
MYSTERIES
MYSTERIES
by by Bev
Bev
DeWeese
DeWeese
WINTER STUDY by Nevada Barr. (Penguin
Group, $24.95, April 2008). Rating A Park
Ranger Anna Pigeon had voluntarily signed up
for the Winter Study Project on moose and wolves at the
Isle Royale Park on Lake Superior; but, once there, she
is immediately uneasy. It’s bone-chilling cold and the six
people she will be working with don’t seem to be overly
friendly. As she approaches the main cabin to settle in, she
thinks she sees the dark shapes and tracks of a giant
animal. And on the window are the words: “Help me.”
Later, when timid wolf researcher, Dr. Katherine Huff, is
found dead, possibly mauled by a wolf, Anna is really on
edge. And this is just the beginning of a series of deadly
encounters.
Since the characters are snowed in, with minimal
outside contacts, this story is reminiscent of a locked room
puzzle mystery, but with lots of physical action. There’s
hiking and camping in below zero weather with almost
constant snow, avoiding wolf traps and cracking ice, and
believing a very big animal with claws and teeth may be
stalking you. Of course, readers know that Anna has
proved she is a competent, fearless, can-do woman in the
first 12 books in this series. But, in a couple of these
suspenseful scenes, Anna is desperately fighting for her
life, and you are not sure she is going to make it.
Though Anna normally doesn’t get close to her
fellow researchers, she is soon convinced that four of the
six are hiding something dangerous. Actually, she
eventually finds out all six have secrets. However, Anna
immediately decides she likes the attractive, intelligent,
athletic woman called Robin. And project head Ridley
seems to be an okay guy. However, Dr. Kathy Huff is very
withdrawn and obviously afraid of Bob from Homeland
Security. Later, we discover she has good reason for her
fear. Incidentally, Bob acts very macho until he is in the
woods. There, real danger turns him into a wimp. Barr
does seem to enjoy sliding in occasional, sarcastic comments
about some of her characters. Jacob, another
researcher, also seems harmless, but he puzzles Anna. Is
he teasing her or coming onto her? He doesn’t have much
luck. And why is young Adam, who’s always dressed in
worn-out, raggedy clothing even on the island? Supposedly,
he’s a handyman, but Anna does not trust him. The
characters are certainly believable and colorful. Still, as
more accidents happen, Anna knows someone is trying to
kill this project and maybe her.
Reviews
This action-packed plot, filled with surprises and
tense situations, combined with an unfriendly, scary setting
and some secretive characters, make this a very entertaining
read.
A CARRION DEATH by Michael Stanley.
(HarperCollins, $23.95, April 2008). Rating: A Attention
mystery readers. Botswana has delivered another
wonderful detective, Assistant Superintendent David Bengu,
called Kubu. We first meet Kubu, which is Setswana for
hippopotamus, driving down a dusty road bellowing operatic
arias at the top of his voice and thinking about food.
Kubu, a very large black detective, often thinks of food. A
mutilated, partially eaten body, minus an arm and teeth,
has been found at a dry waterhole on the edge of the
Kalahari. The victim can’t be immediately identified, even
after preliminary interviews etc. But Kubu is persistent, and
some special satellite data finally indicates that a yellow
Land Rover, traditionally used by the Botswana Cattle and
Mining Company ( BCMC) was in the area. This naturally
leads Kubu to question the Hofmeyr family, the BCMC
owners. From this point on, there is a kidnapping, BCMC
is burgled, a pimp has his throat slashed, a geologist
disappears, a mysterious red-bearded man kills a man in
the alley, and an arm shows up on a faraway beach. And
that’s just the beginning of the action.
A CARRION DEATH is peopled by many marvelous
characters, besides Kubu. Dr. Silisi, a geologist who
looks like a young, black John Lennon, found the first body,
and he and Kubu immediately hit it off. Kubu thinks he
would be a fine detective, and Kubu’s wife, Joy, thinks he
would be a wonderful husband for her sister. However, the
most colorful characters are members of the Hofmeyr
family. Cecil, an affable man who had taken over BCMC
after his brother’s death, insists he is just a hardworking
man keeping the company together until his twin niece and
nephew come of age. He knows nothing about this body.
But Kubu is not so sure. He believes Cecil may have secrets.
Angus and Dianne Hofmeyr are quite a pair. Angus is a
handsome playboy who just wants to have fun. His sister
Dianne is smart, sexy, cold, and calculating, though she
tries to hide that. Then there is Jason, a savvy, muscular
mining engineer who knows everything about the company
and who is Dianne’s boy toy, or more properly, man toy.
A blackmailing pimp and a murdering red-bearded man
also make a number of significant appearances.
However, the reason readers will come back to
this series is Kubu. He is a very competent, successful
detective. He has been taught how “to see things that
others don’t” by a wise old Bushman. Moreover, a kind
neighbor had enabled Kubu to attend excellent schools and
colleges, where he performed very well. Now, he still visits
his parents every week, and he adores his wife. As I
mentioned earlier, he really enjoys his food and cannot
investigate too long without frequent feedings. Furthermore,
Kubu never travels without his opera tapes, which he
always accompanies in a loud baritone. It relieves his stress,
but not his wife’s. Like most good cops, he does challenge
his superiors and he is not afraid to use his intuition, but he