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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Poor Editing of a Mystery with Appealing New Characters!, 13 May 2004
Mysteries are seldom strong in characterization. Usually, the mechanics of the plot keep the author more than busy. Vengeance succeeds very well at both levels. This first entry into what could become a series holds great promise. Surprisingly, though, it is marred by more errors that should have been caught than any other novel I have read in years. I have accordinlgy graded down what otherwise would have been a rave review. Authors usually get a chance to catch errors in galley stage, so the profesional editors should probably not get all the blame here.Lew Fonseca has integrity and persistence going for him, but little else. No one is going to mistake him for Nick Charles, Sam Spade, or Mike Hammer. He is licensed as a process server, and gets occasional jobs from attorneys to find people. Like a terrier, he gets to the bottom of where the missing people are. He is lucky to get paid $50 a day. He lives in his office. He gets leads for jobs at the Dairy Queen, where he eats most of his meals. He gets around by walking or riding a bike . . . unless he can charge a rental car to a client. He's depressed and has a hard time taking danger seriously. Perhaps he even has an unconscious death wish. He lost his wife three years before, and hasn't recovered yet. In this mystery, he is asked to find a runaway teenaged girl who is probably being sexually abused by her father. Separately, a local businessman asks him to find his missing wife. Normally, Lew has no work. Now he has too much. He puts his attention mostly on the runaway, and still can't keep up. And who is that mysterious man who's following him? Lew Fonseca's buddies are as vivid in their uniqueness and appeal as he is. You'll enjoy thinking about them as examples of how the purpose of your life is more important than the resources you have. The book has a strong moral tone, without being preachy, that saves the book from being disgusting as various extreme forms of human depravity are exposed. The mystery was hard for me to solve. Maybe you'll get it sooner than I did, but I was puzzled up until the last few pages. That made the book much more enjoyable for me. A good lesson from this book is to consciously avoid judging people by their appearances and occupations. Everyone is different from what they seem. Try getting acquainted with someone you would normally not spend time with, and see how many of your assumptions about that person turn out to be wrong. That's a good way to overcome the Ugly Duckling stall!
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by Stuart M. Kaminsky
by Stuart M. Kaminsky
