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Five Card Stud |
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 Five Card Stud byElizabeth Gunn Walker & Co. 288 pages, 2000. ISBN 0802733433 Reviewed by PJ Nunn Getting a call to check out a dead body in the middle of a poker game is not one of Jake Hines’ favorite things. When the day’s high temperature never made it to zero - he likes it even less. Such is the life of a homicide detective in Minnesota. Being a dutiful cop, Jake bundles and goes, finding it especially disturbing that the corpse in question is only half dressed – obviously quite frozen and wearing only one sock. There’s no vehicle and no identification, but a definite close range gunshot to the head. Jake’s investigation is thorough and interesting. He soon discovers that the dead man was a long-haul trucker, but the partner and the truck have vanished. Working methodically with a diligent team of investigators, Jake follows the clues on a merry chase before arriving at a surprising but concise conclusion. It’s interesting to find a mystery that focuses so closely on the details of an investigation. FIVE CARD STUD is not what you’d call an "action-packed thriller" yet it keeps a good pace. The frigidity of the Minnesota winter is very real and the careful balance between the plot and the lives of the main players is skillfully drawn. Gunn uses an intriguing sense of arms-length distance that seems apropos with Jake’s foster care background. Through the eyes of the main character, readers maintain an objective distance to all that transpires. Jake is caught up in the self-protective devices he’s maintained since childhood, but we are still close enough to experience the wide spectrum of emotions that confront him throughout the tale. FIVE CARD STUD is the third in the line of Jake Hines Mysteries and a solid contribution to the "must-read" category. |
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