MIST WALKER

Barbara Fradkin

Rendevous Press

ISBN 1-894917-03-0

October 2003

Mystery

Matthew Fraser was once a promising young man. A teacher, he was dedicated to education and to his students. All of that came to an end when he was accused of molesting a student. He was acquitted in the trial that followed, but he felt that his name and reputation were forever stained. Now, ten years later, he is paranoid, agoraphobic, and in therapy. When he misses their usual dog-walking session, his friend Janice is worried. As the story opens, Janice enters his apartment. To her shock, she finds bookshelf after bookshelf crammed with psychology texts, newspapers, and law books. Matthew was clearly still obsessed with his own case.

Janice knows there's something wrong. Matthew isn't there, his phone is off the hook, and his much-beloved dog has been locked in a bedroom for days with no food or water. Matthew would never have left the dog, virtually his only friend in the world, like that. Janice demands that the police investigate. Inspector Green, under some duress, listens to her story. Almost against his will, he becomes convinced that there is more to this than meets the eye. Not only does he need to find a man, he may have to reconstruct a ten-year-old crime. Is Matthew truly innocent? Or is he orchestrating events for his own purposes?

The author pulls the reader into her world from the first page with descriptions of places and people that are all rich and almost lyrical. It's not long before the reader is emotionally invested in the fates of the characters. There are plenty of twists and turns for the average mystery reader; and there is an emotional intensity to this author's work that is sometimes lacking in the genre. This is the third case for Inspector Green. I'll be looking for his first two and eagerly awaiting the next. Highly recommended.