Medusa: A Pacific Northwest Mystery - Hardcover

Moody, Skye Kathleen

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0312266782 ISBN 13: 9780312266783

Publisher: Minotaur Books, 2003

Synopsis

Strange things are happening in Washington State's beautiful Elliott Bay, but U.S. Fish and Wildlife's star agent Venus Diamond is on medical leave after being shot in the line of duty. At least, she is until her family needs her help: A bratty young girl, Pearl Pederson, goes overboard and drowns while yachting with her brother, Henry, and their well-to-do next-door neighbor, Tim Diamond. Tim claims he saw a huge, tentacled arm come out of the water to sweep the child to her doom, but Henry swears Tim pushed her, so twelve-year-old Tim is charged with murder. Venus knows her brother is innocent, but also knows she'll have a devil of a time proving it.

Days pass, and speculation abounds until Pearl's body washes ashore, full of puncture wounds and looking very much like the victim of some strange sea creature. It's just the first in a string of similar events, and before long the whole city of Seattle is abuzz with the possibility of a sea monster in Elliott Bay.

Venus Diamond knows there must be a more logical explanation for the killings, however, and sets out to find out what's happening, including looking into some strange goings on at the Elliott Bay Marina. She'll need all her environmental expertise to find the elusive connections. Medusa is another intriguing, quirky Pacific Northwest mystery full of the environmental relevance and appealing characters Skye Moody's fans love.

About this title

About the Author

Skye Kathleen Moody, a writer, photographer, and former East African bush guide, lives in Seattle, Washington, where she was born. This is her sixth Venus Diamond mystery, following most recently K Falls.

From Publishers Weekly

In Moody's hugely overwrought sixth outing for Venus Diamond (after 2001's K Falls), the undercover agent for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service finds herself in strange waters. Rather than the environmental crimes she usually tackles, Venus has to help her teenage brother, Tim, accused of murdering a friend, Pearl Pederson, who drowned while they were playing pirates on Tim's mother's yacht. Venus is close to Tim, but even she finds it hard to believe his story-that a giant jellyfish grabbed Pearl and dragged her under. New plot lines come thick and fast. Kidnapping, child pornography, car smuggling, Russian mobsters who like to cut off victims' hands, computer hackers, Chinese drugs made from poached animal organs and sold on the black market, a dangerous toxin for biological warfare ready to be shopped to the highest bidder, a ticking bomb, a midair gun battle in helicopters, an underwater knife fight, plus one old romance, one new romance and the assorted family crazies-there are enough story elements here for at least three novels. Moody's plots have always been thick and dense; this one is way over the top. It also lacks the depth provided in earlier books by thought-provoking presentations of serious environmental issues. Without that, this Medusa strangles itself on the myriad muddled plot threads. Most fans will beg Venus to get back into the wilderness where she belongs.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Minotaur Books
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0312266782
• ISBN 13: 9780312266783
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 336