Customer Reviews

Snow Job

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

William Deverell is an absolute gem of a mystery writer... truly deserves better exposure to the American mystery reading public. While his books open up all imaginable variables in the law, lawyers and the justice(?) system, these are very far from being dry dull reads. I appreciate most of all Deverell's razor sharp wit (triggers laugh-out-loud hoots) and adore all of his profound and well developed characters, be they lawyers, woofers or Newfie poets (ya gotta read the books to find out...). This one's a hoot to read, perfect for holiday lounging time. Highly, highly recommeded, as are all of his previous books.

This book is well written and a fun read. I especially enjoyed the parallels with current day Gulf Island life and Canadian politics.

First sentence: "I am satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that ... that thing over there, that statue or whatever you want to call it, is what the Criminal Code calls a disgusting object."

Canadian lawyer Arthur Beauchamp is 60 years old, married to the country's only Green Party MP, who is twenty years' his junior. Arthur wants nothing more than to retire on his farm on Garibaldi Island in Vancouver. Instead, he ends up becoming the lawyer for the family of Abzal Ehrzan, a man accused of killing six Bashystani cabinet ministers visiting Ottawa regarding a deal on the Bashistan oil fields.

I'm afraid this book lost me after 12 chapters. It wasn't that I didn't like the protagonist; I did. Arthur Beauchamp is a character who appealed to me from the very beginning. I liked the characters' introspective observations about himself, his younger wife and her still much younger staff.

The author's voice is one I always enjoy. He employs a wonderful use of vocabulary even though I found myself reading with the book in one hand and a dictionary in the other. The wry humor...""Farewell Reception," the embossed card read, an oxymoronic keepsake." often made me laugh.

There were two main reasons why I stopped reading. The first was redundancy--I don't know how many times, in those first 12 chapters, we were told about Arthur's divorce, descent into alcohol and the writing of his memories. The second reason was that the plot, as far as I read, rather plodded along without going anywhere particularly interesting. Add to those the fact the book is supposed to be a satirical look at Canadian politics. Not being Canadian, I know almost nothing about their politics so the satire was lost on me. That being said, I find myself intrigued by Mr. Deverell and would consider trying a different book by him ["April Fool" has been recommended].

SNOW JOB (Legal Mys-Arthur Beauchamp-Canada-Cont) - DNF
Deverell, William - Standalone
McClelland & Stewart; Reprint Edition ©2010, US Paperback - ISBN: 9780771027239