It was November, 1923, prohibition is in its infancy along with a woman’s right to vote, and Uncle Rory has returned spouting claims that it's life and death, his life and death. Wallie, at twenty-three years old, has been curious about her mysterious Uncle Rory since fifteen years ago she found his picture and met silence from family to her questions.
There is a lot to love in this Austin Starr mystery.
The setting is mainly Vancouver, but also Seattle in 1969 and focuses on the women’s liberation movement which is an integral part of the plot. Having vivid memories of all that went on during the late ‘60s, I have to say Kendall has done a great job weaving all of the emotions of the times into the story.
It's the 4th of July on Fripp Island, South Carolina. Ann Malone introduces her family to a pair of newlyweds. But the next day when Ann goes for a walk on the beach, she finds a dead woman wearing the locket the new bride had worn the previous night. Nothing doing but she must find the killer. Mistaken Identity, Malone Mystery #4, is a holiday offering by Pat Gligor.
The fish-out-of-water/stranger-in-a-strange-land character has always been a good starting point for fiction. Kay Kendall’s Desolation Row takes Austin Starr out of the water of Texas and drops her into the strange land of Toronto, because Austin’s draft-resisting husband (He doesn’t like being called a draft “dodger.”) brings her there during the Vietnam War era. The people celebrate Decoration Day instead of Veterans Day, women use the “washroom” instead of the “ladies room,” and the mailboxes are red (with a crown on them) instead of blue (with an eagle).
Located dead center in downtown Austin’s hipness is the bookstore voted best in the state capital for more than 15 years. BookPeople, the largest independent bookstore in Texas, is a beloved institution among denizens who vow to “keep Austin weird.” Yes, that’s a marketing slogan in Austin! Although not generally known for funkiness or artsy-ness, Texas does have the city of Austin, which tries its darnedest to make up for deficiencies in those qualities in the rest of the state.
