The Dangerous Hour

I always enjoy Muller's McCone Mysteries and this one was no exception. One of McCone's operatives has been set up and the possible repercussions for the agency are dire. I like the way that the character keeps growing and the other characters aren't static. It's like life!

I couldn't find the first entry in the Sharon McCone series, Edwin of the Iron Shoes so I tried this one, the 22nd installment published in 2004. I liked it, but not enough to think I'll really get around to reading more in the series.

On the irritating side, McCone complains about California stereotypes, without seeming to realize she's a walking caricature of how much of the country perceives San Francisco, where this book is mainly set. McCone, a private investigator, started out working for a law coop with the word "poverty" in it and now owns an agency where employees are "family" and resemble a rainbow coalition. A liberal do-gooder, McCone rants against "tax cuts for the rich." She's also something of a Mary Sue--beautiful, show more exotic looking (she's half-Shoshone), she can kick ass a la Buffy, is an expert shooter and a pilot. She has a nephew who is a computer "genius," an ex-brother-in-law who is a rock star, a friend with a new novel praised by the New York Times and a significant other who is a hostage negotiator.

On the other hand, I really liked that this surrounded a detective agency rather than the usual PI loner, and it was refreshing to see an idealist rather than the usual cynic. Other than that, I wouldn't say this novel stood out in style (the usual first person, though soft-boiled in tone) or plot. No twist or turn that makes it memorable. show less

Aaah, back on the case with Sharon McCone. There's nothing sweeter. I'm sure I'd love these books even if they were turning into total trash. They're not.

The investigative agency's future is threatened when accusations of theft are made against an employee. A very good read, with some well written bad guys!

A Sharon McCone mystery. McCone now heads her own firm, McCone Investigations, a successful, established agency with a growing staff and more work than they can keep up with. But someone from her past would like to see her fail and is willing to take out her close associates to do so. When Julia Rafael, a young investigator whom McCone decided to take on despite her checkered youth, is accused of stealing the credit card of Supervisor Alex Aguilar, the man being groomed to be San Francisco's first Hispanic mayor, the criminal investigation could have dire implications for McCone Investigations. McCone's initial doubts about her employee quickly give way to a determination to discover who's trying to sabotage her company.
[Marcia Muller, show more author of DANGEROUS HOUR will be named Grand Master at the Edgar awards banquet, hosted by the Mystery Writers of America! Marcia Muller is the author of more than twenty novels and many short mystery stories. She has also established a brilliant reputation as an anthologist and critic of mystery fiction. In 1993 she was awarded the Private Eye Writers of America Life Achievement Award, and Wolf in the Shadows was nominated for the 1994 Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Crime Novel and won the Anthony Boucher Award. She lives with her husband, mystery writer Bill Pronzini, in northern California.] show less

Credit card fraud, trusting employees, running a business , all keep Sharon on the trail of someone out to ruin her.

Marcia Muller ist eine zuverlässige Krimiautorin, deren Romane um Sharon McCone immer spannend und kurzweilig geraten und sich wohltuend von den locker-flockigen Kommissarinnen und Kommisaren der letzten Jahre abheben.Diesmal ist ihre eigene Detektivagentur bedroht, denn es wird versucht, Shaoron über ihre Mitarbeiter zu ruinieren.Ein solider, spannender Krimi.