Living off his trust fund while practicing law in a small tidewater town, Kendall Wilkinson finds his life altered by the bludgeoning murder of his friend and cousin, Roger Dufault, a death that reveals a web of betrayal, political and financial chicanery, and blackmail. A first novel.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
In his thoughtful and atmospheric first novel, Canter creates a film noir-like world in which practically every character--who of course knows every other character--harbors a guilty secret. It's set in 1989 in an unnamed Southern state, attorney Kendall Wilkinson hears about the murder of his friend Roger Dufault from his current inamorata, Dufault's wife Peyton. As executor of Dufault's estate, Wilkinson uncovers shady secrets in his pal's past involving drug dealings and possible political machinations. What follows is not so much a mystery as a gradual disclosure of the ties that bind Wilkinson to most of the other characters, all of whom are in some way implicated in Dufault's death. Canter's spare, straightforward prose leads readers through a labyrinthine plot, which, while it may lack the drive of a conventional whodunit, provides all the danger and deception of the best noirs. As with many examples of the genre, the narrator ends up being both hero and patsy--Canter in fact saves his biggest coup in this regard for the book's very last page.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
This impressive, polished first novel offers up a story of Southern manners and morals in the guise of a mystery. Tidewater born and bred, Kendall Wilkinson coasts along in his forties with a comfortable law practice, plenty of liquor, and stolen hours with Peyton Dufault, wife of his cousin and good friend Roger. When Roger, a real estate developer, is brutally murdered, Kendall finds himself on the verge of deep trouble. Haunted by his father's tragic, scandal-driven suicide years before, Kendall wades through the mire of family relationships, friendships, and political alliances to get at the truth of Roger's death and to salvage his own self-respect. Canter writes with great assurance. He lovingly details the modern South and its people, thus giving his work a strong texture. The story is suspenseful, but the suspense builds slowly to a knockout final scene. Highly recommended, especially for libraries with Southern fiction collections.
Dean James, Houston Acad. of Medicine/ Texas Medical Ctr. Lib.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Dean James, Houston Acad. of Medicine/ Texas Medical Ctr. Lib.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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