Perilous Relations

by Carole Epstein

Book Overview

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0802733093
• ISBN13: 9780802733092
• Release Date: January 1997
• Publisher: Walker & Company
• Length: 276 Pages
• Weight: 1.02 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.8" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Best in the series ...

THE PLOT Barbara Simons, retired airline exec, has purchased a ride-along-with-the-police-for-a-night in an auction, and this is her night -- after several hours of boredom, the police respond to a murder scene. By happenstance, it is someone that she knows: a former exec of the same airline has been murdered. Ever inquisitive, Barbara comforts the widow, talks to the deceased's sister, goes to the wake and then to the funeral.WHAT I LIKED There are several elements in this book that make the story fly along faster than the previous book in the series (Perilous Friends). There are fewer sub-stories distracting from the main plot, and the streamlining makes for a more coherent story. The writing itself is better as well, and the new characters are fleshed out where appropriate. Most importantly, there is the reintroduction of romantic options for Barbara in terms of the handsome cop Greg, as well as a not-yet-defined relationship with a new male sidekick. The ending is a little weaker than the rest of the story, and it all comes together a little too quickly for my tastes, but that seems to be a factor of the sub-genre rather than the writing or this particular book -- in fact, it is handled rather well here, except for a small problem of logistics in terms of the bad guy transporting a gun around Montreal (can't say any more than that without giving away the ending). A little unrealistic, but not enough to affect the ending. If the next book in the series is as good or better than this one, sign me up for a copy!WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE There isn't anything big that I didn't like in this book, just one small thing. The relationship-cliffhanger from the end of the last book is not a major part of this book, and is instead left sitting there in some sort of relationship limbo for a good portion of this book (until pg. 121). One of the reasons I tracked this book down was the ending of the last book -- I didn't like the cliff-hanger aspect, but I had to know what happened (normally, my To-Be-Read pile is so big that I never take the time to search for a specific book). But, her out-of-town bf had been coming in the last book for what she thought was going to be a big weekend with some important announcement or question, and I expected some sort of resolution here. It doesn't happen. OVERALL RATING 4.25 / 5.0

A fast-paced and witty mystery

PERILOUS RELATIONS opens with the former executive vice-president, and still-unemployed, Barbara Simons collecting her prize from a charity auction: a ride-along with a couple of dour french-speaking police officers through the night-time mean streets of Montreal. What starts out as a boring (and hunger filled) ride for Barbara becomes intrigueing when coincidence lands her(along with the humorless officers) at the evidently burgled home of her former employer. In true Simons fashion, Barbara finds herself smack in the middle of a murder scene, and very soon thereafter running a sideline investigation into the sudden death of her former boss at the behest of his not visibly bereaved widow. As with PERILOUS FRIENDS, readers of PERILOUS RELATIONS are in for a romp as Barbara wise-cracks her way among the rich and famous of Montreal. The dialog is witty, the characters are fun, the relationships are real, the mystery meshes well with the side plots, and the food and fashion are out of this world. For all the laughs (and there are plenty)the darker subtext of the book addresses the on-going tensions between the French and English speaking sections of Montreal. I hope Barbara Simons is around for many more Perilous adventures.

An enjoyable read

Former public relations expert, Barbara Simons is wealthy enough to remain unemployed, at least for awhile. However, she does not remain idle for very long. When her former boss, Walter Whitestone, the ex head of an airlines, is murdered in his home, the egomaniacal Barbara begins to investigate over the objections of the local police. She immediately concentrates on the family, who she knows very well and concludes that almost everyone of them is capable of murder. Barbara also questions business associates of the deceased and his lovers. Her inept interference seems to alienate every person she speaks to and even manages to unite the French and English speaking factions against her. Still, for someone who hates to see her clothing soiled, Barbara risks her own life to satisfy her curiosity. Though not quite at the caliber of the fantastic premier novel (PERILOUS FRIENDS), the second Barbara Simons novels is a very good who-done-it due to the clumsy investigative techniques and antics of the arrogant, at least in her mind, female Sherlock Holmes. The story line is obvious, but it is Montreal and Barbara that turn Carole Epstein's book into a fun to read amateur sleuth novel. Harriet Klausner