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THE GOOD THIEF’S GUIDE TO AMSTERDAM
by Chris Ewan
St Martin's Minotaur, November 2007
240 pages
$23.95
ISBN: 0312376332


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

First-time author Chris Ewan has woven a masterful tale of intrigue that takes full advantage of its European setting while charming his readers with a witty main character, Charlie Howard. Howard is himself a mystery writer, embroiled in a faltering ending to his latest novel, when he receives an email with an interesting proposition. The American who contacts him seems to know of his side work and has a lucrative offer to make. Just what is Howard’s sideline? Charlie practices that of which he writes – performing commissioned burglaries.

Howard is wary of accepting the American’s offer after meeting him in a local bar. Although the money is good and the task itself seems simple (steal two monkey figurines while the American himself keeps the owners occupied), Charlie wonders if it’s all too good to be true.

When he arrives at the designated meeting spot after having stolen the two figurines, he knows his gut reaction was correct. From that follows his own tangle with Dutch law enforcement, but more – the desire to solve the mystery of the missing third monkey in a “See No Evil, Speak No Evil, Hear No Evil” trio.

THE GOOD THIEF’S GUIDE TO AMSTERDAM not only creates a wonderful mystery for its readers to follow, it also interjects a wonderful sense of humor, letting down the guard on Charlie Howard and making him a real, likable leading man. That he feels comfortable (if not always capable) in the midst of conmen and thieves seems to add, not detract, from his persona. Readers will enjoy all the asides and tangential relationships that Charlie has with other characters in this story. And anyone who has ever visited Amsterdam will revel in the settings, which are not heavy-handed, as is so often the case in a novel with a city featured in its title.

Author Chris Ewan won the Long Barn First Novel Competition in the UK, a clear sign of just how good this first novel is. Ewan’s pacing in this story is spot on, doling out the information in just the right quantities to keep his readers zinging along with the story, anxious to learn just why those silly figurines are so important. His intertwining story of a writer’s frustration in ending a mystery successfully is charming as well.

The only quibble one could have with this story is (not surprisingly) the ending, in which he calls all of the characters together to explain the missing pieces to the puzzle. Despite this, there is so much to enjoy with THE GOOD THIEF’S GUIDE TO AMSTERDAM that even this can be forgiven. With such wonderful writing, readers are sure to be hopeful that Ewan decides to take on other cities, other mysteries.

Reviewed by Christine Zibas, December 2007

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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