Fallout

February 27, 2017
In MWA Grand Master Paretsky’s intriguing, if flawed, 19th V.I. Warshawski novel (after 2015’s Brushback), the Chicago PI looks into the disappearance of August Veriden, a quiet young man with dreams of working behind the camera. She learns that August became enamored of Emerald Ferring, a black actress well known in her community but little known to white people. With some cajoling, Warshawski persuades Emerald’s close friends to let her follow August and Emerald’s path to the University of Kansas in Lawrence, where Emerald was once a student and August was planning to film a documentary about her. On arrival in Lawrence, the detective is welcomed with less-than-open arms. Unfortunately, Paretsky loses the Emerald thread midway as Warshawski becomes entangled in small-town politics, particularly those involving the mentally ill daughter of an eminent scientist and the town’s history as a spot for anti-nuke protests in the 1980s. Sharply drawn characters partly compensate for a plot that’s fascinating when it stays on track but too often meanders. Agent: Dominick Abel, Dominick Abel Agency.

Narrator Susan Ericksen deftly portrays private investigator V.I. Warshawski, who takes on a case that leads from Chicago to the Midwest and racial tensions of the past. A young film student and a faded black movie star have gone missing while while making a documentary of her Hollywood years. Ericksen's conversational style, skillful emotional range, and diverse accents enhance the production. When the mystery takes Warshawski to Kansas, Ericksen creates believable-sounding former anti-nuclear activists. And when a woman who tries to help Warshawski is obstructed by her venomous parents, Ericksen captures all the tension in their relationship. Ericksen is particularly adept at portraying spirited black folks of all ages. Subtle humor and glimpses of Warshawski's troubled love life add levity to a tragic story. S.G.B. � AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine

November 15, 2016

Famed investigator V.I. Warshawski is back, and--surprise!--for the first time ever she's not in Chicago. Accompanied by her dog, she's in Kansas, crossing prairies dotted with Cold War-era missile silos as she hunts for a young film student and a waning film star. With a 100,000-copy first printing.

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