Illusions
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- £3.49
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- £3.49
Publisher Description
In his 24th and most intriguing appearance, the "Nameless Detective" finds himself involved in two intricate and emotional investigations. The first is intensely personal: the unexpected death of his estranged friend and former partner, Eberhardt. Although there seems to be no question that Eberhardt committed suicide, "Nameless" becomes obsessed with the reasons behind the act. "A man doesn't just all of a sudden trade living for dying. Something prods him across the line between thinking about it and actually doing it. Every suicide, every homicide has its trigger. What was Eberhardt's?"
Meanwhile, he is hired by a Santa Fe businessman to find his ex-wife, who disappeared three years earlier. Locating the woman turns out to be fairly simple; she is living and working in the northern California wine country. But just when the case seems finished, it takes on bizarre dimensions—a fatal shooting that may or may not be accidental, hidden motives, and a web of lies and deception. "Nameless" is compelled to continue his investigation when it becomes clear he is partly, if inadvertently, responsible for the victim's death.
The keys to both cases lie in illusions—those people create about themselves and those they perceive in others. Additional similarities also emerge, leading "Nameless" to a series of startling revelations and ultimately to the two most difficult decisions of his career.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
San Francisco's Nameless Detective faces tormenting decisions as he tackles two cases, one of which closes a troubled chapter in his own life. Nameless begins this dark tale (his 24th, following Sentinels) at the funeral of Eberhardt, his former agency partner. The evidence of suicide seems conclusive. While struggling with belated regret over his long estrangement from Eberhardt, Nameless gets a new client: Santa Fe businessman Ira Erskine believes that his missing wife, Janice, is hiding in the Bay Area. Nameless tracks her to a winery where she is living under another name and planning to marry the owner. Saying she fled in terror, Janice tells Nameless that she fears Erskine will stalk her and hurt her again. When Erksine is murdered, Janice has a perfect alibi: jury duty at the county courthouse. With painstaking detective work and help from his sassy computer whiz assistant, Tamara, Nameless unravels the Erskine and Eberhardt mysteries. But facts don't always add up to truth, leaving Nameless to decide how his damning information can produce justice. Pronzini handles the procedural details and the moral dilemmas with his usual great skill, delivering two engrossing puzzlers and heartfelt lessons on the ethics of unearthing other people's secrets.
