Murder on the Gold Coast
Barbara Fleming
(Reviewer - Rebecca Brown)
2005 Silver Maple Publications
ISBN: 0970897014

Lt. Matthew Alexander investigates unhappy families, illicit relationships & murder.

A dead millionaire, several wealthy prime suspects preparing to defend themselves at any cost, a homicide commander determined not to ruffle any important feathers, & a chief of police with a history of appeasing the power elite in the District of Columbia all pack the pages of Murder On The Gold Coast.

One of the unwritten rules of mystery fiction is the promotion of the notion that crime doesn't pay; that the good are rewarded & the bad punished. Barbara Fleming's second Matthew Alexander Mystery puts a different spin on this, especially about who pays the piper when the final account is taken.

We first met Matt Alexander, “a smart, strong-willed, fearless young hero”, in Hot Stones-Cold Death. This time he's called on the case of a complex mystery involving old money & new revenge. This investigation will test all of Matt's skills as he works a homicide in the home of his former girlfriend. The girl whose father had flat-out rejected Matt's bid for his daughter's hand for all the usual reasons: wrong side of the tracks, no money, no prospects, etc.

While Murder on the Gold Coast is in dire need of a copy editor, it has a strong story to tell, & an unfolding of character & intent which will keep you glued.
(11/20/05)

Rebecca