Practice to Deceive

A real estate scam tips Holland Taylor off to a widespread, deadly conspiracy. When a drunk driver kills her entire family, Florida retiree Irene Gustafson is left rich and alone. Between savings and life insurance, the death of her son and his family leaves her with nearly $300,000-a veritable fortune in a community where most live off social security. Following the advice of Ann Landers, Mrs. Gustafson hands the money over to an investment manager. The returns are steady until he starts investing in Willow Tree, a low-income housing development on the fringes of the Twin Cities. The money vanishes, and Mrs. Gustafson is destitute. That's where Holland Taylor, St. Paul private detective, comes in. His recently retired parents are Mrs. Gustafson's neighbors, and they want Taylor to recover the old lady's money. It seems impossible, but as he investigates Willow Tree he finds a twisted real-estate conspiracy with deep roots in city politics-and a vicious killer hired to protect the secret.

At first, reading about Holland Taylor might seem like déjà vu. He's a former cop turned private detective; he has an African American associate who covers his back, a high-level friend on the police force, and a smart lady who tries to keep him on the straight path. He also practices martial arts, brews exotic coffee, and favors a special brand of local beer. But author David Housewright isn't doing a Spenser rip-off; he's just having fun telling a good story while ringing a few changes on Robert Parker. Taylor works out of Minnesota's Twin Cities, a long way from Spenser's Boston, and Housewright's plot is as open-faced as his genial homage. Asked by his father to help an 85-year-old neighbor recover the life savings stolen from her by an oily investment counselor, Taylor uses a cross-dressing computer genius to harass the swindler. Things quickly turn nasty and lots of shots are fired--some are deadly. Housewright's Edgar Award-winning first book about Taylor, Penance, is available in paperback.