Customer Reviews

Unforced Error: A Rep and Melissa Pennyworth Mystery

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Intellectual property lawyer Rep Pennyworth figures he'll do just about anything to bring in a big-bucks client. He'll even spend a weekend as a civil war reenactor while he tries to decide whether the publisher really can trademark the idea of a faux civil war unit. He can't figure out how the publisher could make any money at it, but that isn't the lawyer's job and a hundred thousand bucks is real money. But when an editor ends up killed and Rep's friend Peter is the lead suspect, Rep realizes he's going to have to do more than dry lawyering--he'll have to figure out what really happened before Peter is sent to prison.

The dead man isn't exactly a saint--he had an affair with Peter's wife, for one thing--which gives Rep and his wife Melissa a cast of suspects. But the police like to follow the obvious, especially when Peter's civil war cavalry sabre tests positive for the dead man's DNA. Plenty of library research into civil war battles and Vichy France politics, as well as a scad of literary illusions add depth to the story as Melissa tries to decide which philosopher to use to advise her friend--finally to decide on Travis McGee (of John D. MacDonald fame) and Rep finally agrees to play Nick and Nora (of The Thin Man fame) with Melissa.

Author Michael Bowen dishes up plenty of plenty of literary illusions for fans of mystery and literature, a clever opening scene involving a potential affair and reality T.V. and some interesting looks into civil war reenacting. I thought that the final revelation into the badguy's ultimate plot was a bit over the top, but that didn't stop me from enjoying the adventure, the witty dialogue, or the way nerdy librarians, book editors, and intellectual property lawyers become action heros.

Michael Bowen is a "writer's writer." With smart, stylish prose he weaves together various aspects of modern pop-culture, from Reality TV to romance novels to Civil War battle reenactments. His characters are likeable, their conversations are lively, and when a gunshot rings out in the Kansas City library, you know you're in for a wild, bookish ride. It's all-hell-breaks-loose in the Heartland, over-the-top fun.

The fun of this book is the main characters of Rep and Melissa and the itinerary references. The weakness is and that, at times, the literary references occasionally seem forced and get in the way of the story, and the complete implausibility of the plot. But it's worth a look if you're in the mood for something light that will test your memory of literature.

The tone of this novel and the author's attitude toward murder and mystery fiction, is immediately encapsulated in the prologue. "First degree murder is punishable by death in Missouri, even if the victim is an editor of romance novels." Reppert G. Penneworth, top copyright lawyer and his wife Melissa go off to Kansas City to explore the possibility of groundbreaking legal stuff, something most lawyers aspire to. He's dropped almost immediately into a puzzling murder case involving Civil War re-enactors, a publisher, a philandering editor, a huffy romance novelist, and a raft of other engaging characters. The books is replete with literary allusions, clever dialogue and one of the smartest amateur detectives to grace the pages of mystery fiction in a long time. Now, writing new copyright law may sound a bit dull, but be assured, it isn't, not in the deft hands of this author.
This is a very well-written novel, moves with great pace, avoids pitfalls of deficient logic and rockets to a teriffic ending.