A Mysterious Review of …
The Bughouse Affair by Marcia Muller and Bill Pronzini. A Carpenter and Quincannon Mystery.
Review summary: Set in 1890s San Francisco, this first in a new series works quite well as a period mystery. The characters are appealing and creatively drawn, the storyline interesting (if also infused with a handful of convenient coincidences). The odd element here is the inclusion of Sherlock Holmes, a not unwelcome character though an unnecessary one. (Click here for text of full review.)
Our rating:
The Bughouse Affair
Marcia Muller and Bill Pronzini
A Carpenter and Quincannon Mystery
Forge Books (January 2013)
Publisher synopsis: This first of a new series of lighthearted historical mysteries set in 1890s San Francisco has former Pinkerton operative Sabina Carpenter and her detective partner, ex-Secret Service agent John Quincannon, undertake what initially appear to be two unrelated investigations.
Sabina's case involves the hunt for a ruthless lady "dip" who uses fiendish means to relieve her victims of their valuables at Chutes Amusement Park and other crowded places. Quincannon, meanwhile, is after a slippery housebreaker who targets the homes of wealthy residents, following a trail that leads him from the infamous Barbary Coast to an oyster pirate's lair to a Tenderloin parlor house known as the Fiddle Dee Dee.
The two cases eventually connect in surprising fashion, but not before two murders and assorted other felonies complicate matters even further. And not before the two sleuths are hindered, assisted, and exasperated by the bughouse Sherlock Holmes.
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