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The atmosphere in the Bellehaven Public Library turns suitable somber when social science librarian Patrice arrives at work following the unfortunate death of her aged poodle, Binky. Everyone know that Binky was Patrice’s 'soulmate', so to speak, and everyone, including Miss Helma Zukas, agrees to attend the garden memorial service Patrice has planned for her beloved pet. Miss Zukas is not as agreeable when it comes to the idea of chaperoning a group of school children who’ve been invited to camp out over night in the library. Library director May Apple Moon’s latest plan to encourage reading in the young seems preposterous to the practical Miss Zukas, but it seems that her only way out of chaperoning lies in joining the library’s Snow to Surf race team. Caught between a rock and a hard place, Helma agrees to revive her childhood skills as a canoeist and join the event that involves skiing, biking, and canoeing over 38 miles of Washington wilderness. Helma has other things on her mind besides the race. A man has been found murdered in the alley behind her friend Ruth’s house. An eccentric painter, Ruth is currently in her purple mood and much too absorbed with her work to fully realize the implications of having been seen arguing with Joshman Lotz shortly before his death. Reality soon hits Ruth, though, and she calls upon her best friend Helma to help her stay out of jail. Helma unwillingly pumps Police Chief Wayne Gallant, the only man capable of making her blush, for information. At the same time she follows up on her own hunches and instincts to prove Ruth’s innocence. Her private investigation leads her to Radio Lotz, Joshman’s brother and companion in numerous felonious activities. Radio is no gentleman. His warning to butt out of the case is followed by a stern reprimand from Detective Carter Houston, one of Gallant’s minions who’s been keeping a close watch on both Ruth and Helma. Helma, of course, does not take the detective’s advice. Her inquiries lead to an attempt on Ruth’s and Helma’s lives while they’re canoeing on the lake. Despite the possibility of another attack, Miss Zukas continues to practice her canoeing while Ruth flits about town from gallery to gallery, her stock as a painter steadily rising along with her reputation as a murder suspect. As the day of the race approaches, no arrest appears imminent in the case. Miss Zukas is as stumped as the police are until she discovers a clue in the most unlikely of places. Faced with a distasteful moral decision, Helma acts as she always does, in a practical, no nonsense manner, letting the chips fall where they may. This book is the third in the Miss Zukas series, but can be read as a standalone due to Dereske’s deft introduction of the characters and setting. The reader is as much at home in the Bellehaven Library as they would be if they’d read previous novels in the series. The cool, calm, and collected Miss Zukas is a delightful protagonist with her mid-western commonsense approach to life’s little trials, including murder. Her relationship with Boy Cat Zukas, the stray feline who inhabits her balcony but not her home or heart, reflects the tenuous ties that bind the single librarian to other people in her life. She reveals little of herself to anyone, and it is only Chief Gallant who can occasionally throw her off stride. If you’ve never read the Miss Zukas series, you’ll want to after sampling this little mystery. Well plotted and peopled with true-to-life characters, THE STROKE OF DEATH is a delight for those who enjoy unusual protagonists involved in the lighter side of murder.
Reviewed by Mary V. Welk, December 2006
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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