Book Review: Dancing With Mr. D

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

Dancing With Mr. D     Amazon US PB Amazon Canada PB
Lisa Kleinholz
Class/Genre:   Mystery
Series: Zoe Szabo # 2
Avon, Dec 2000, $5.99, 367 pp.

Zoe Szabo and Billy Harp once shared the perfect marriage with her working as a reporter for Rolling Stone and he being a major rock and roller. That changed when Billy got heavily into drugs, which nearly led to his death. Billy entered rehab and upon release persuaded Zoe to take him back. The couple moved to Greymont a small New England town where she became an investigative reporter and he became a songwriter.

Billy has an opportunity to make a comeback, which Zoe supports, but prays he stays off the drugs. While he records an album in Vermont, Zoe investigates the murder of a rabid environmentalist. While Zoe visits Billy, one of his musicians, who had been in Greymont on the night of the murder, accidentally "drowns". Zoe sees a link between the two deaths. Her inquiries lead her to a money laundering scheme, land fraud, and extortion. However, no solid evidence exists that would hold up in court.

DANCING WITH MR. D has a double theme: a marriage in crisis and a murder investigation both within the backdrop of a small New England town. The punk-looking Zoe is a disinterested outsider with no stake in the outcome of events since she constantly shows that Greymont is not home. The mystery is a winner because there is a host of viable suspects with different motives. Though Zoe concentrates on one path, readers never know until the end whether that direction is a giant red herring. This series has the potential for a long run because the audience becomes involved with the lives of the cast.

Harriet Klausner

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner