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CROSSWORD TO DIE FOR, A
by Nero Blanc
Berkley Prime Crime, July 2002
304 pages
$13.00
ISBN: 042518479X


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

Oh good, I thought, a crossword puzzle mystery. To me, that means a nice, cozy read populated by cats and little old gray-haired ladies licking the tips of their pencils as they fill in the blanks over tea.

Not so.

Much to my surprise, the protagonist is, in fact, a young newlywed head over heels in love with her cop-turned-P.I. hubby. I don't think she even wears glasses. And the only little old lady I could find has connections in the intelligence community.

Annabella Graham, crossword puzzle editor for The Evening Crier in Newcastle, Massachusetts, is frazzled. The father she hasn't seen in nearly a year is coming to meet his new son-in-law. Unfortunately,the much-awaited event must be cancelled due to his having suffered a heart attack en route.

Is it really a simple heart attack? Belle begins to doubt it as she tries to settle her father's affairs. Thepicture of the man she thought she knew so well slips away bit by bit, until finally the image is well and truly shattered.

West Coast girl that I am, I thoroughly enjoyed both the New England flavor of Belle's travels near herhometown and the "sunshiney" feel to her father's Florida environs. The contrasting settings also serve to underline the changes in his life as he moves farther away from her both emotionally and geographically. Unfortunately, the characterizations were often weak, making it feel as though actions were undertaken primarily to fit the plot instead of events being allowed to unfold more naturally in line with the characters' behavior. In spite of this, I found the motivation believable, though I felt the ending relied far too much on coincidence.

Nero Blanc, AKA Cordelia Frances Biddle and Steve Zettler, have co-written three crossword mysteries prior to this one. Each installment includes a number of crosswords for the reader to complete, many of which hold clues to the eventual outcome. While I won't be reading more in this series, I can understand its pull for those who enjoy this kind of puzzle. Sadly, I just didn't feel that the overall structure quite held up on its own.

Reviewed by Jenifer Nightingale, May 2002

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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