Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner
The Disposable Man
Amazon US PB Amazon Canada PB
Archer Mayor
Class/Genre: Mystery Police Procedural
Series: Joe Gunther # 9
Mysterious, Nov 1998, $22.00, 294 pp.
In Brattleboro, Vermont, police lieutenant Joe Gunther wonders why a foreigner would be murdered in a nearby quarry? The victim carried no identity and no one seems to be claiming a missing Eastern European. The only marks of meaning are some strange tattoos on the body of the corpse that abruptly arouse the attention of the FBI and the CIA.
The CIA wants Joe to back out of the case, something he refuses to do. Instead, they invite him to DC, but before he can leave someone tries to kill him. Still, the intrepid law enforcement official continues with his inquiries even though he is no longer sure who he can trust.
Just about any other writer besides the great Archer Mayor would flop miserably with this way out story line of a technological shootout between Russians in Vermont. However, Mr. Mayor not only pulls off the plot, but makes Joe seem more human in the face of his findings. Mr. Mayor is one of the sharpest writers of police procedurals, who also should be paid by the state tourist bureau because his descriptions of Vermont is breathtaking.
Harriet Klausner
Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner
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