A Not So Perfect Crime

January 5, 2009
Solana’s sparkling debut pokes sharp fun at Catalan politics, society and pretensions. Despite different names and personalities, Eduard Martínez and Borja Masdéu are not only twins but partners in Frau Consultants, an extralegal outfit that provides discreet services to Barcelona’s well-to-do. Lluís Font, a powerful MP with presidential ambitions, hires the brothers to determine if his wife, Lídia, is having an affair with the painter of her portrait. That assignment is right up their alley, but when Lídia is poisoned via a gift box of marrons glacés, the brothers are out of their depth. Borja, who’s remade himself as a member of the upper class, is a confident and amusing operator, while brother Eduard is a family man with scruples and misgivings. From their false front of an office and the secretary who exists only as a lingering scent and a bottle of nail varnish, the brothers bumble and stumble to the truth and hopefully to further adventures.

February 15, 2009
Solanas excellent debut novel, set in the streets and parlors of Barcelona, offers both probing social commentary and a riveting crime story. Twins Eduard and Borja (except no one knows they are brothers) run an off-the-books investigative agency, and they think theyve have landed a big fish when a famous MP contacts them, suspecting his wife of infidelity. What seems like a run-of-the-mill crime in upper-class Barcelona becomes much more complicated when the lady in question is found dead of poison on Christmas Day. Despite the leisurely investigative style of the brothers, the story moves along quickly, carried by the expertly paced plot, the fascinating details of daily life in Barcelona, and the myriad fascinating characters, from Eduards alternative-lifestyle guru wife to Borjas high-society aunt. Suggest this one to readers who have enjoyed Chris Ewans Good Thief series (Good Thiefs Guide to Paris, 2008).(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)