Wild Thing: An Eddie Dancer Mystery

Darleen R. Golke is a high-school teacher-librarian in Abbotsford, B.C.

Calgary PI Eddie Dancer, introduced in Arthur Ellis–nominated All
Shook Up (2005), responds to a call from psychologist Peter Maurice.
Currently in England on a book tour with his wife, Maurice stands
accused of the brutal murders of 10 women.

During his investigation of the serial murders, Eddie learns that
Maurice recently purchased a 200-year-old manuscript written in Old
Italian by the father of hypnotism, Franz-Anton Mesmer. The manuscript
was discovered by Mesmer’s great-great-granddaughter who, along with
her young son, became the first murder victims. At one point, Eddie
finds the still-warm body of a translator, another casualty of the
manuscript.

Eddie recruits the most determined of the paparazzi that dog the
Maurices, Stix, and their investigation leads them to a specialist in
the history of Newgate Prison and Mesmer’s connection to a brutal
criminal. A frantic search ensues after the killer grabs Stix’s
daughter.

A tough, wisecracking PI in the Spenser style, Eddie takes the reader
on a wild ride. Fast-paced action, plenty of snappy dialogue, a clever
yet grounded protagonist, well-crafted secondary characters, controlled
suspense, urbane prose, and a tidy conclusion with a hint of the
mystical combine to produce an entertaining and satisfying read.