John J. McAleer

A great, unique, down-to-earth war novel. Very thoughtful for its time, serving up suspense and action as well as plenty of humour and commentary on military life in the Korean War.
I had already enjoyed it a great deal, then the 'epilogue' - which actually describes the surprising series of real-world events that led to the book being written - was basically a whole epic saga of its own. Seriously, that short chapter at the end could make for a whole book (or movie adaptation!) itself.

Someone is killing members of Boston's venerable Cart-Tail Club. The book begins with one member being knocked unconscious and locked in a freezer, where, of course, he suffocates. We learn that other members of the club have died in what had been written off as accidents. Our hero, who has just been proposed as a member, is a probabilities expert, and is asked to solve the mystery (discreetly, please, as befits a venerable Boston club).

It turns out that the murders are all connected to a show more woman who wrote pulp fiction years earlier, her work all based on secrets and transgressions of ancestors of the murder victims.

The motive ultimately makes little sense and the book is hard to get into. Too many characters are introduced too quickly, with too much esoteric gabbing. But once past htat, it's rather amusing, thought the satire is probably best appreciated by Bostonians. show less

Well done work on a very interesting author. Short chapters, succinct and insightful analysis of books wrapped in crisp views of the author's other life.