Milt Kovak, head of the homicide division for a rural Oklahoma sheriff's department, probes the mysterious deaths of five people from carbon monoxide poisoning. Reprint. AB. K.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
At first it seems self-evident to Milton Kovak of the Prophesy County, Okla., sheriff's department (last seen in Houston in the Rearview Mirror ) that bank teller Lois Bell committed suicide by turning on her car's engine in the closed garage. The carbon dioxide then seeped into her home, killing her three children and husband. But Kovak is puzzled by the absence of a suicide note and by the state of the house, the filthiest he's ever seen in his 50 years--an overflowing commode, soiled bed linens, piles of used diapers, food-encrusted tabletops. Discovering the family has no kin and, in fact, no past, he sends the husband's fingerprints to the FBI for indentification-- and opens the door to some shocking revelations. Totally involving, this tale is pure Twin Peaks . The bizarre is rocking on every front porch and there are enough adulterers for a town twice its size. Best of all, though, is balding Kovak holding his own against a city-slicker reporter, a nagging sister and the real estate establishment. Having proudly survived a hemorrhoidectomy, he can survive all.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Interesting older series,
By Linda S. Myers (TN) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Other People's Houses (Hardcover)
Other People's Houses, by Susan Rogers Cooper, continues the Chief Deputy Milt Kovak series well. Milt is back in Prophesy County, Oklahoma, with his sister Jewel and her children (see Houston in the Rear View Mirror) living with him. They had never been close, and there are the to-be-expected problems in consolidating households. Milt's very human reactions and comments (he's the narrator) create the sense of a real person, a well-meaning man doing the best he can in less than optimal circumstances at home and at work. Strengths of the series are the well-developed characters and the realistic relationships between them.
When the Bell family is found dead of carbon monoxide poisoning in horrific surroundings at their rented home, Kovak doubts the obvious suicide-accident scenario because Lois Bell has an unexplained blow to the head. Investigation shows that the family does not exist in any records before 1986 (the date of the book is 1990 approximately), leading Kovak to conclude that they had been in the federal Witness Protection Program, so he keeps digging. The plot is logical with appropriate clues to the ultimate solution. A great strength of this series is its atmosphere. Small-town, regional rhythms and language add to the realism. Cooper does a good job of conveying the violence and gore to which Kovak is exposed at crime scenes without going into graphic detail, which I appreciate. Highly recommended series.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Other People's Spouses,
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This review is from: Other People's Houses (A Milt Kovak Mystery) (Paperback)
Having recently been introduced to this author, Susan Rogers Cooper, I have been intrigued to
read some of her earlier work. She has other mystery stories by groups, with different heroes. The " Milt Kovak Mysteries" are the one's I wish to follow. A rather elderly lady handed me this paperback as I was leaving the local library..she was through with this particular donated book and was passing it along to me. Being caught off guard by someone handing me something free, I quickly glanced at the picture on the front cover and thought it odd that a woman of that age would be reading vampire novels. Having gone through that particular genre earlier in life, I carried the book home with me to make a decision on what to do with it. As I'd been through a bout or two with the blood thirsty cult stories, this latest batch of the genre was not of much interest to me. But on closer inspection, this was not at all what I thought it was. No vampire novel, this. A mystery! As I made a decision to read this particular book, I was so caught up in the story-line, I realized if I didn't put it down, I'd have nothing to look forward to the next day. Well, I savored the tale and was wanting to consume more of this authors' works. So I went to the internet, to see if Amazon.com would have any of her titles. Yes, they had other selections at many price points. I ordered on-line and waited patiently for the books to come. "Other People's Houses" is one in the series of "A Milt Kovak Mystery". As was the first little gem I received for free! The whispered comments by Kovak are perhaps the most helpful ingredient in keeping a homicide story from being too dark. How she came up with his "asides" (seeming to be distinctively male) I haven't a clue (pun intended); but a clever ploy to look forward to. She gives many hints in this tale to take you down a few paths thinking you're on the way to discovering a possible solution to the plot. Later, much later in the story, you can see where it's going, but there's still loose ends. I did not yet have the killer fingered. So many choices, twists and turns, perhaps too many possible villains to pick from. It starts off with a bang, a little slow in the middle, but worth the time. If it wasn't for the comedic relief of Kovak, this book would have been just another Plain Jane story. She has a winner with Milt Kovak, the lawman detective who likes a quiet, slower pace of the setting out in the boonies. He's had to struggle with crime in a larger venue, and you could obviously tell he was more at ease in the "green, green grass of home."
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