Mysterious Reviews, mysteries reviewed by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books, has written a review of The Critic by Peter May. For our blog readers, we are printing it first here in advance of its publication on our website.
The Critic by Peter May
An Enzo Macleod Mystery
Poisoned Pen Press (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 1-59058-458-9 (1590584589)
ISBN-13: 978-1-59058-458-3 (9781590584583)
Publication Date: November 2007
List Price: $24.95
Synopsis (from the publisher): Gil Petty, the world’s number one wine critic, went missing during a tasting tour of the little-known wine region of Gaillac. Four years ago, his body was discovered strung up on a cross in the vineyards of southwest France.
Dressed in the ceremonial crimson robes of the Brotherhood of the Order of the Divine Bottle, the semi-decayed body had been preserved in red wine before being planted line a scarecrow among the heavily-laden vines. His murderer was never found.
Petty's influence was powerful. A single good review meant overnight success for a winemaker; a single bad one spelled ruin.
But possible clues in Petty's reviews are locked behind the seemingly unbreakable code he invested to keep them secure from prying eyes prior to publication. Advance information would have brought rich rewards for wine speculators. Secrecy was essential.
Scots exile and former forensics expert Enzo Macleod reopens this well-chilled cold case to discover that the genteel world of winemakers hides a busines sdriven by greed, envy, and desperation.
In the idyllic vineyards, Enzo finds no shortage of possible killers, including local winemakers, The Brotherhood of the Divine Bottle (an ancient society dedicated to promoting Gaillac wine), and Petty's daughter, MIchelle.
Enzo, fortified by copious quantities of wine, hunts an elusive murderer who is quite prepared to kill again.
Review: On his quest to solve the greatest unsolved murders in France, Enzo Macleod travels to Gaillac to investigate the death of a wine critic in The Critic, the second mystery of this series by Peter May.
Gil Petty was a world-renown authority on wine and his influence on the industry was considerable. Four years ago he disappeared; a year later his body was found in a Gaillac vineyard preserved in red wine. Enzo, uninvited and unwelcome by the local authorities, manages to get official approval to look into the murder and quickly discovers a number of clues that were originally overlooked and which ultimately lead to the identity of the killer.
Note: Potential spoilers may be included in the following paragraphs.
On balance, The Critic is a generally enjoyable mystery. Wine itself is something of a mystery, and it pairs very well with a whodunit. Winemakers are passionate about their craft, and murder mysteries almost always involve passion of one kind or another. Early in the book, one vintner describes it this way: "There's poetry in the grape, you know. The essence of Man, of civilisation, of sophistication. We've done all manner of things. We have circumnavigated the globe, sent spaceships to Mars, but there's no higher achievement than the making of a fine wine, no greater pleasure than to drink it."
But there are a number of facets to The Critic that are somewhat problematic. Even though Enzo is convinced deciphering Petty's notes will not lead to his killer, an extraordinary amount of narrative is related to accomplishing this. While the coded wine reviews may be of some academic interest, they have, as Enzo predicted, little to do with the murder. It is unclear why so much of the book is devoted to this subject. Late in the book, Enzo's (unnecessary) trip to the California wine country completely disrupts the flow of the story. And in the end, the crime more or less solves itself without Enzo's direct involvement. This is a disappointment since Enzo is a master puzzle solver; the reader is deprived of the pleasure of watching Enzo put all the pieces together.
Despite the problems noted, The Critic is very readable. May carefully develops his story, naturally dispersing clues here and there that will later be important in both creating a suspenseful conclusion and understanding the motive behind the murder. The characters are richly drawn, and Enzo in particular is a wonderful protagonist. It's a shame, however, that he wasn't allowed to use all his skills in closing this particular case.
Special thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for providing an ARC of The Critic for this review.
Review Copyright © 2007 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.
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