McNally's Risk

For those who like this sort of thing, this is the sort of thing they like. I certainly do. A friend recommended the McNally series when I told her that I was in dire need of purely escapist reading, and it has filled the bill. This third episode starts off with Archie undertaking an investigation of someone's undesirable daughter-in-law-to-be, but soon evolves into a twisted tail of murder, mayhem and eventual heroics on Archie's part.

Much of the fun in this series is observing the gradual unfolding of Archie's distinctly eccentric personality: this is NOT your usual PI hero. Archie is the son of a wealthy Palm Beach lawyer, but is not a lawyer himself, having been kicked out of Yale Law for streaking. Instead, he works as the show more "Discreet Enquiries" branch of Dad's law firm, said discreet enquiries involving the rich and respected of Palm Beach. He lives happily with Mum and Dad, untroubled by his lack of worldly success, and with no visible ambition to change anything. He loves the ladies, one in particular, but ends up following a maxim from "Finian's Rainbow" -- 'when I'm not near the girl I love, I love the girl I'm near.' He loves food, and clothes, and his red Miata, and is a delight, particularly when he waxes a tad (only temporarily) melancholy. show less

Archy is assigned to investigate the bona fides of Theodosia Johnson, the intended fiancée of a wealthy scion, to assure the scion's mother that they don't have a gold digger on their hands. Theodosia is extremely beautiful, and Archy becomes quite smitten with her. Meanwhile, there are suspicions that this simple credit check may end up becoming part of a larger narrative of murder.

This is the raciest of the first three novels. Archy does wind up in bed with Theodosia (and other ladies) on several occasions. The sheer quantity is enough to make it racy -- Archy is never one to go overboard on the details. This may explain why my teenage self was able to read it without really noticing. My younger self also did not notice a show more blink-and-you'll-miss-it reference to David Copperfield that had me nearly laughing out loud, and a reference to the Al Jolson song "I'm Sitting on Top of the World" that had me immediately humming the Proclaimers song "I'm On My Way". These references gave the book an extra half-star. The plot itself is fairly predictable, and Archy has eyeroll-inducing double standards with regard to open relationships, but the comfort of the familiar characters and the hit of nostalgia made this an enjoyable book to read on the bus. show less

I love Lawrence Sanders! The politically incorrect Archy McNally gets a taste of his own medicine from Connie in this one. Maybe there's hope for the rogue yet. A really fun read, totally mindless. And Sanders always makes me so hungry!