Customer Reviews

Death Spiral - An Avalon Mystery

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Clyde Linsley has written a highly entertaining first novel, a tasty little tale best devoured in one or two sittings so you can concentrate on the trail of clues followed by youthful private eye Leo McFarlin. With only about 210 pages to work with, Linsley fashions a fully developed character in McFarlin, a young man working on his third career and with a special reason to empathize with teenage figure skater Debbie Liston, the target of death threats if she does not give up competitive skating. Hired to protect Debbie by her mother, once a highly promising young skater herself, McFarlin soon finds himself in more danger than his client. I must confess to having more than an impartial interest in this book: Clyde Linsley is a longtime friend and former colleague at the Hartford Times. So I certainly want "Death Spiral" to be successful. And I'm happy to say that, after reading it, I can recommend it with a clear conscience. Way to go, Clyde!

This book provides basic insight into the world of ice skating for someone whose only knowledge of competitive skating comes from the Nancy Kerrigan - Tonya Harding affair.

Linsley writes in the style of an early Robert Parker but without the extraneous trips into the culinary world.

Althoug there is some predictability, this novel has some unpredictabilities. The characters are given identities that we all can recognize. As a first novel, it gives a hope for future adventures of the investigator, Leo McFarlin.