Law and Disorder (A Camilla MacPhee Mystery) [Perfect Paperback]

Mary Jane Maffini (Author)

Book Description

Series: A Camilla MacPhee Mystery | Publication Date: November 1, 2009

One of Canada's best-loved sleuths returns in her sixth hair-raising adventure. Victims' advocate Camilla MacPhee is following the trial of Lloyd Brugel, a ruthless criminal kingpin charged with a fatal firebombing. She’s looking forward to seeing him convicted, but when his sleazy counsel is found dead, it conveniently delays the proceedings. The lawyer, no saint himself, was drowned and shot. In case that message was too subtle, an old joke featuring dead lawyers shows up. Camilla soon learns the victim was not the only member of the Ottawa legal profession whose death was heralded by a tasteless attempt at humour. Is Brugel reaching from behind the bars of the regional detention centre to manipulate his trial and to exact revenge? Camilla does her stubborn best to head off the killer, hampered by her annoying assistant, the police, her bossy sisters and the arrival of her possible stepdaughters-to-be for the Dragon Boat Races.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Victims' advocate Camilla MacPhee is following the trial of a ruthless criminal charged with a fatal firebombing.But when his sleazy counsel is found dead, it delays the proceedings. She soon learns the victim was not the only member of the legal profession whose death was heralded by a tasteless attempt at humour.

About the Author

Mary Jane Maffini is a lapsed librarian and a mystery addict. She is the author of six Camilla MacPhee mysteries, two Fiona Silk adventures, five Charlotte Adams books, and nearly two dozen short stories. She holds two Arthur Ellis Awards for best mystery short story, as well as the Derrick Murdoch lifetime achievement award. Speak Ill of the Dead was shortlisted for an Arthur Ellis Award for best first novel and Lament for a Lounge Lizard for best novel. Mary Jane lives and plots in Ottawa.

Product Details

• Perfect Paperback: 312 pages
• Publisher: Napoleon & Company (November 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1894917863
• ISBN-13: 978-1894917865
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #923,722 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Mary Jane Maffini rides herd on three protagonists and mystery series: Charlotte Adams is a professional organizer in upstate New York, while Camilla MacPhee snoops in Canada's capital, and Fiona Silk has to be the most reluctant sleuth in West Quebec. The latest Charlotte Adams mystery is Death Loves a Messy Desk and the long-awaited sixth Camilla MacPhee book, Law & Disorder, hit the shelves in the fall 2009. The fourth Charlotte Adams book, Closet Confidential will be out in July 2010 and The Busy Woman's Guide to Murder will follow. A seventh Camilla MacPhee book is slowly simmering. Before turning to crime, Mary Jane had lots of mysterious fun as a librarian and a mystery bookseller. She's been reveling in mystery all her life and has also written nearly two dozen crime short stories. She's won two Crime Writers of Canada Arthur Ellis awards for short stories and has been nominated four more times for novels and short stories. She lives and plots overlooking the scenic Rideau River, in Ottawa, Ontario with her long-suffering husband and two princessy dachshunds. Along with brave little Lily, she is a member of Ottawa Therapy Dogs.

www.maryjanemaffini.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Delightfully Funny Mystery, November 25, 2009

By 

Cindy Chow (Kaneohe, Hawaii) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Law and Disorder (A Camilla MacPhee Mystery) (Perfect Paperback)

Everyone loves a dead lawyer joke. Until real lawyers end up dead.

Ottawa victim's advocate attorney Camilla MacPhee was anxiously awaiting the conviction of Lloyd Brugel, especially after her client committed suicide soon after testifying and being grilled by Brugel's sleazy lawyer, Rollie Thorsten. When Thorsten turns up shot dead and dumped in the Rideau River, Camilla assumes that it's just another way of Brugel delaying his court sentence. She changes her mind when her favorite client, reformed art thief Bunny Mayhew, turns up on her doorstep with the news that he's been receiving letters containing lawyer jokes, followed by notes naming a recently deceased attorney. Due to the easily distracted and borderline incompetent assistant her father saddled with her with, Camilla discovers that she also had unknowingly been receiving the same "warnings." When the police disregard her suspicions, Camilla recruits her computer savvy senior citizen friend to help investigate and prevent further deaths. Her assistant Alvin Ferguson both aids and hinders her as he prepares for the arrival of Camilla's boyfriends daughters, whom Camilla was unaware would be staying at her house. A bulldog of a real estate agent, determined to help Camilla sell an unwanted inheirtence, adds complications as Camilla attempts to discover what ties all of the deceased attorneys together and who may have it in for her, her client, and the law profession.

A hilarious contrast to the morose, disillusioned, lawyers of John Grisham, Camilla proves to be a delightful, impetuous, impulsive, and occasionally irrational character who bulldozes her way through in order to help her friends. A short, dark, changeling in a family of tall, svelte, blonde, sisters, Camilla dodges their attempts to meddle in her life as she copes with the arrival of her love interest's daughters who also have a history of interference. The characters and intricate plot keep the pace of the novel moving quickly, and a rather unorthodox observation by Camilla provides her with a completely unexpected solution. This fourth in the Camilla MacPhee series will have readers eager for the next, if only to see if her life will ever get less complicated.

5.0 out of 5 stars Another brilliant entry....., August 19, 2010

By 

Susan "loverofbooks" - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Law and Disorder (A Camilla MacPhee Mystery) (Perfect Paperback)

into our hero, Camilla MacPhee, her family, friends, et al....I just finished this and couldn't wait to go online to rave!! I have followed Camilla from the first book in this series; each book just keeps on getting better than the previous one.
I truly can't wait for the next Camilla adventure into murder and mayhem!!

There's been enough said re the plot, so please allow me this: If you enjoy a strong female character, quirky in so many ways, I know you'll love Camilla MacPhee.
Surrounding that character are so many others with quirks of their own, plot lines that take your breath away (read that to mean, panting for next title), and of course, the joyous ending, take advantage of buying this series from the first title, "Speak Ill of the Dead", reading them in order (personally important to me) and sit back and enjoy the ride!!!