Book Review: The Dangerous Hour

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

The Dangerous Hour     Amazon US PB Amazon US HC Amazon Canada PB Amazon Canada HC
Marcia Muller
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Private Investigator   Woman Main Character
Series: Sharon McCone # 23
Mysterious, Aug 2004, $25.00

In San Francisco, the staff of McCone Investigations held a meeting to discuss the success of the business, which has tripled in less than two years including branching into new areas like computer forensics and how bright the future seems. The meeting is barely over when the SFPD Fraud Detail Mirandizes trainee Julia Rafael for illegally purchasing items with a credit card belonging to jobs training program supervisor Alex Aguilar. The victim claims she stole and used his card after he rejected her sexual advances.

McCone thinks Alex was a satisfied customer who now accuses one of Sharon’s operatives of grand theft. She also realizes that since Julia, as a trainee, was unlicensed with the Department of Consumer Affairs, Sharon and her company are liable, which could lead to a loss of their license. Insisting she is innocent, Julia observes that she is too small a target to matter. Sharon agrees that the goal has to be a bigger fish, probably herself, but by whom, why and the tie in to Aguilar, a potential Mayoral candidate, remain unknown. She and her crack staff plan to find out and prove her trust in Julia was and is the right thing.

THE DANGEROUS HOUR may be the twenty something McCone tale, but contains a freshness as if this was the first novel. The story line is fast-paced with plenty of action including murder and revenge as Sharon and her team struggle to learn the identity of the culprit trying to destroy her. With all that going on and taking care of a cat with feline diabetes, Sharon’s lover Hy Ripinsky asks her again. Fans of the series and newcomers will enjoy this tense private investigative tale.

Harriet Klausner

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