The Connicle Curse

January 26, 2015
At the start of Harrisâs unsatisfying third late-Victorian mystery (after 2014âs The Bellingham Bloodbath), Annabelle Connicle hires Colin Pendragon, a successful London private detective, and Ethan Pruitt, Colinâs professional and romantic partner, to ascertain the fate of her missing husband, Edmond. The worried wife also calls in Scotland Yard after finding a great deal of blood in a gardenerâs shed at their West Hampton home. The police soon discover Edmondâs charred corpse in a blackened depression in a nearby road, identified by a ring that matches what his wife described. A voodoo fetish lies beneath the body. The relationship between Colin and Ethan is underdeveloped, and Colin, who delights in showing up his rivals on the force, misses no opportunity to denigrate them, to the point where he comes across as obnoxious rather than self-assured. The solution depends too much on chance. Agent: Kathy Green, Kathy Green Agency.