A Walk Through the Fire

May 3, 1999
In the 20th Sharon McCone mystery, the San Francisco-based PI leaves her usual haunts for Hawaii. McCone's downstairs office neighbor, Glenna Stanleigh, is a documentary filmmaker with a project on the island of Kauai. Glenna and her partner, Peter Wellbright, are making a film about Hawaiian legends and myths, based on the writings of Peter's father, Elson Wellbright, a descendant of early missionaries to the islands. There have been a series of accidents on the film set, and Glenna suspects that someone is trying to kill her or a member of her crew. Can McCone help? McCone is not licensed to operate in Hawaii, so she takes along her lover, Hy Ripinsky, and finds a way to work with the local branch of his security company, RKI. As she delves into the curious circumstances on the set, McCone keeps running into trouble with the large, influential and badly dysfunctional Wellbright family. Two family members--Elson himself and his youngest son--have gone missing for some years, and nobody seems to care much. As her inquiries lead her inevitably into learning more about the local folklore and history, McCone falls under the spell of the islands. She also fights an attraction to Russ Tanner, a local helicopter pilot and distant relative of the Wellbrights. Along with a taut, expertly plotted story, Muller conveys the magical appeal of Kauai, as well as the long-simmering resentment of some of the islanders toward white settlers. The Hawaiian setting, so well employed by Muller, reinvigorates a veteran, if a consistently entertaining and imaginative, PI series.

April 1, 1999
In her 20th appearance, Sharon McCone is seduced by the legends of Hawaii and nearly by one particular Hawaiian. Brought to Kauai initially to investigate "accidents" on the set of her filmmaker friend's documentary, McCone finds herself dealing with murder, Hawaiian militants, and drug dealers. At times deliciously devious, the plot, which combines past and present la Ross MacDonald, ultimately may be too complex even for diehard mystery readers. Nevertheless, Muller fans will await this.

October 1, 1999
YA-In this 20th book in the series, detective Sharon McCone and her lover Hy Ripinsky are called to Hawaii when a friend's film crew is plagued with accidents. The documentary he is making about the island's gods and goddesses has awakened the ire of someone or something, and it's up to McCone and Ripinsky to discover who or what is threatening this potentially award-winning work. As the PI delves into the accidents, she finds that the family of the film backer has more than its share of secrets, each of which could have an impact on the project. Smooth writing, an entertaining plot, and sustained suspense contribute to Muller's reputation as a top-notch writer of gumshoe mysteries.-Pam Spencer, Young Adult Literature Specialist, Virginia Beach, VA

Copyright 1999 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 1999
Fans of the female PI genre who haven't met Muller's Sharon McCone--one of the first to appear in print--are missing a real treat. McCone is smart but not intimidating, down-to-earth but not dull, and daring but not foolish. She's also one helluva good detective. In McCone's latest outing, documentary filmmaker Glenna Stanleigh employs her to come to Hawaii to investigate a series of frightening accidents plaguing the cast and crew of Glenna's new documentary. Glenna fears that someone is staging the "accidents" to keep the documentary from being made. When Sharon and her longtime love interest/investigative partner, Hy Ripinsky, arrive in Hawaii, they find the situation has gone from bad to worse. On top of everything else, McCone finds herself attracted to a handsome helicopter pilot, and her relationship with Ripinsky founders. There's passion, danger, and drama aplenty as McCone works to solve the case and bring her relationship with Hy back on an even keel. As usual, Muller's concocted yet another winner in this highly successful series. ((Reviewed April 15, 1999))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 1999, American Library Association.)