Nantucket Sawbuck-Steven Axelrod

Nantucket Sawbuck Steven Axelrod Poisoned Pen, Jan 7 2014, $24.95 ISBN 9781464200878 On Nantucket Island, Preston Lomax draws up a long list including his wife and children as to who wanted him dead and who will shortly join that parade. Three weeks later, his daughter finds his corpse in his eyesore Mcmansion. Massachusetts State Police Detective Lonnie Fraker claims jurisdiction as this is a capital crime, but new resident Chief of Police Henry Kennis stays actively involved. The homicide investigation surfaces many suspects; as his family loathed him for his abuse of them; and every islander and many on Wall Street had a strong motive to kill Lomax who was in major debt and allegedly ready to default by vanishing. Fraker solves the screwdriver stabbing murder by arresting David Treizize. However, Kennis’ gut from years working homicide in L.A. tells him they locked up the wrong person. Following his feelings, he continues the inquiry though alienating many locals who demand case closed and the State who threatens to destroy him. The fabulous first Kennis Nantucket police procedural is a strong whodunit that brings to life the island in a vivid though not always complementary way. Although transitions at times come across unsmooth, readers will appreciate this taut, fast-paced yet character driven murder mystery. Harriet Klausner