Iris Johansen is one of the few authors whose characters seem just as comfortable in modern as in historical times. She has a few dialogue quirks -- either her people don't speak in complete sentences and cut themselves off, or they interrupt each other a lot, but she does appear to be improving on that issue.
Anyhow, Quicksand is the latest Eve Duncan mystery. Just when we were beginning to get tired of poor Eve Duncan and her weary stepdaughter and husband, Johansen infuses some new blood into the series. First, there's Montalvo, for whom Eve is beginning to feel a tendre. Then Johansen pulls in Megan Blair from Pandora's Box to add another dimension to the already freaky connections Eve has experienced.
Personally, I think Johansen is getting tired of her main storyline, too. Her entire oeuvre seems to revolve around Bonnie, who really isn't all that compelling as a character to begin with. Eve, Joe, and Jane are all intriguing on their own. Eve's new sizzle, Montalvo provides an interest and an excitement that I have not felt for an Eve Duncan book. There are only 2 more names on Montalvo's short list of guys who could have killed Bonnie, and for that I am truly grateful. We could hear about forensic skull reconstruction for days, but we'd like to see Bonnie laid to rest and Joe pushed to the edge by excitement and adventure, not because he's competing with a dead child for Eve's attention.
In spite of my griping over the direction this series has taken (the early books were really exciting), I did enjoy Quicksand. It was a fast-paced, entertaining read, and I give it 3 packs of Dunhills and a pound of Mello Joy Medium Roast.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment