The Paris Enigma, Pablo De Santis
Hardcover: 256 pages
Publisher: Harper; First U.S. Edition (November 11, 2008)
Language: English
Product Description: Discriminating general readers as well as whodunit fans will enjoy this outstanding puzzler, winner of the first Casa de las Americas prize for best Latin American novel. Argentine author De Santis conjures up a veritable Justice League of 19th-century master sleuths--the 12 Detectives--who meet for the first time in Paris, at the 1889 World's Fair. Argentine Sigmundo Salvatrio, loyal assistant to founding member Renaldo Craig, represents the absent Craig. When Louis Darbon, one of two claimants among the 12 for the title of Detective of Paris, falls to his death from the Eiffel Tower shortly before the fair's opening, Darbon's rival, Polish expatriate Viktor Arkazy, takes Salvatrio on as his apprentice, and the pair struggle to solve the mystery before more victims are claimed. De Santis adroitly explores such issues as the difference between image and reality while providing intelligent and entertaining discussions of alternate approaches to detection. [Publisher's Weekly, starred review].
The Legal Limit, Martin Clark (signed)
Paperback: 416 pages
Publisher: Vintage; First Vintage Contemporaries Edition (aka: reprint edition), June 2, 2009
Language: English
Chicago Sun-Times Review: In this crime/legal thriller, Clark explores the boundaries between law and justice, sin and forgiveness, fraternal bonds and betrayal. Mason stands at the center of an ethical dilemma, but he is no less compelling than his brother, their mother, and even Mason's partner. Clark "draws characters as well as Scott Turow and crafts plots as well as John Grisham," notes the Oregonian, but reviewers agreed that Clark's background has given him superior understanding of legal intricacies. Humor, sharp, regional dialogue, and impeccable plotting make for an unstoppable narrative. Only theLos Angeles Times faulted Clark for sinking "into that soft-focus therapeutic argot that now passes for American moralizing." In the end, however,The Legal Limit compellingly shows that "doing justice does not always flow from a rigid application of the law." [Bookmarks Magazine]
Huge, James W. Fuerst (signed)
Paperback: 305 pages
Publisher: Three Rivers Press; 1 edition (July 7, 2009)
Language: English
Product Description: In his mind's eye, precocious 12-year-old Eugene Huge Smalls, the narrator of Fuerst's quirky debut, is the lineal descendant of Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade and other pulp detectives he admires. When the nursing home where his beloved grandmother stays is vandalized, Huge sees a chance to follow in their footsteps by solving the crime. What follows is a picaresque romp around suburban New Jersey as Huge misreads clues, misinterprets motives and mistakes mundane incidents for diabolical schemes as only an inexperienced adolescent with a restless imagination can. Largely plotless, this coming-of-age story is full of awkward digressions. Still, Fuerst demonstrates a sensitive ear for contemporary teen talk, delicacy at handling the amusingly contentious relationship between Huge and his older sister and mom, and skill at conveying a child's-eye view of the world that is full of nostalgia, humor, candor and emotions that all readers can relate to. [Publisher's Weekly]
Labels: Huge, In the Post, James W. Fuerst, Martin Clark, Pablo De Santis, Signed editions, The Legal Limit, The Paris Enigma
