· A Mystery’s No Problem by Lou Rowan(ff) This rollicking novel takes place over the wide expanse of the US – coast to coast - as the hero and narrator (coincidentally named Lou Rowan) seeks to find his way. Money and power are the main drivers, though family love can trump both. And so, we are thrust into the mutually dependent worlds of investment and organized crime, with a few politicians lurking in the background. There are murders, an atypical earthquake, and one particularly vengeful feline (though more sinned against than sinning). Like passengers in a Wild Mouse ride, we are jerked around corners from one colorful family constellation to the next. The ironic distance of the prose is what pulls us in.(ironically) Instead of telling us that the Accountant divulges the truth (or sings like a canary), we learn that “her Broca’s area electrified,” part of an entertaining conceit about her brain’s response to both neglect and stimulation.
Lou Rowan the narrator disappears during the protracted foray into the gangster world of New York and New Jersey, which occupies the center of the book. Discuss.
Thanks, Marge, for your lively, insightful comments.