Synopses & Reviews
The thirteenth mystery featuring Detective Jack Willows and Claire Parker Harvey is finally out of prison, with a whole lot of living to do - and a burning desire to pull off a monstrous score that will save him from the workaday world.
He also wants his old life back. But his wife, Kim, has been doing some living of her own. To supplement the returns from her tattoo business, she has taken on a little crime, in partnership with Harveys old friend, Matt Singh. In fact, they are planning a million-dollar diamond robbery when Matt is gunned down in a mall parking lot.
This seems fortuitous for Harvey, but Kim has other plans. Shes now head-over-heels in lust with Sandy, a younger man with a very private life. Sandy seems equally smitten with the planned diamond heist. But to pull it off they need a getaway driver.
Harvey doesnt need to be asked twice. He still wants things the way they were and, to him, the only thing standing in his path is Sandy.
Meanwhile, Willows and Parker, now married, are dealing with birth, parenthood - and other crucial matters.
Synopsis
Harvey is finally out of prison, with a whole lot of living to do--and a burning desire to pull off a monstrous score that will save him from the workaday world. Meanwhile, Willows and Parker, now married, are dealing with birth, parenthood--and other crucial matters.
About the Author
Laurence Gough, who lives with his wife and two children in Vancouver, has written twelve Willows and Parker mysteries: The Goldfish Bowl, winner of an Arthur Ellis Award for Best First Novel from the Crime Writers of Canada; Death on a No. 8 Hook; Hot Shots, winner of an Arthur Ellis Award for Best Crime Novel of the Year; Serious Crimes; Accidental Deaths; Fall Down Easy; Killers; Heartbreaker; Memory Lane; Karaoke Rap; Shutterbug; and Funny Money. His international thriller, Sandstorm, won the Author Award (fiction) from the Foundation for the Advancement of Canadian Letters in 1991.
Author Q&A
Q: Have you ever gone on a ride-along as part of your research?
A: Yes. This is a darker question than you might reasonably have expected it to be. Probably the most interesting – and bizarre – time was when I went out on one of the VPD boats. The cops, having a little fun with me, insisted I give the recovery stretcher a sniff to see if I could “smell death”. It was a bizarre experience, primarily because someone I knew had comitted suicide by jumping off the Granville Street bridge a few days before my scheduled jaunt. Her body was found a week later, in the area I had toured.
Q: How do you keep your characters fresh?
A: Refrigerate them. Physics fascinates me; especially the black art of cryogenics. The desk of a serious writier is always littered with pens and pencils, plenty of blank paper, and a good supply of freezer bags.
Q: How have Jack Willows and Claire Parker evolved over the years? What’s next for them?
A: They've become older and wiser over the years. Rather unlike myself. Humour is a more important part of the later books. Truthfully, aside from the next book, I don't have the foggiest idea where they're going. I do know that it won't be a smooth journey. It's possible that Claire will discover the joys of motherhood, and Jack will be given a promotion that takes him off the street. On the other hand, when the writing isn't going well, I sometimes toy with the idea of blowing them both up real good...
Q: Do you have a favourite Jack and Claire adventure?
A: I'm prouder of some books than others. I always have highest hopes for the one I'm currently writing.
Q: You have written over 50 radio dramas for CBC, were any of them mysteries? How do you feel that the process of writing radio drama influences your mystery writing?
A: Almost all of them were light-hearted mysteries. I was recently offered more radio work but turned it down because the timing wasn't right. Radio dialogue is not the same as TV dialogue or the kind of dialogue a novel requires. I think the most important single lesson I learned was the value of rewriting. I had to sit down at a table with the actors - up to twelve of the bastards - and justify every line I'd written. It was hard work, and an invaluable experience. I'm not the first author to note that the art of writing is rewriting. Even so, it's true.