2000 mystery, twentieth in Muller's series about Sharon McCone,
private investigator in San Francisco. Sharon's father dies, and when
she's going through his things she finds a very surprising document.
Spoilers.
It turns out that Sharon was adopted, and this was all kept
secret not only from her but from everyone who wasn't directly
involved. And… after all the soul-searching and all the usual McCone
shenanigans, I can't help wondering: why? What harm would it have done
if Sharon's parents had let it be an open thing, or at least had told
her before they died (in the ways that even in 2000 did exist to tell
children)? I mean, sure, on the one hand there wouldn't have been the
extended investigation that takes up the book. But also various people
who were involved wouldn't have been brewing resentments for forty
years…
Combine that with lots of foreshadowy talk like "Now I know that, in
the end, death is the only certainty", all of which comes to nothing,
and I felt that the reach was most definitely exceeding the grasp.
Yes, all right, an old murder is uncovered and a new one is committed,
but it all seems a bit minor compared with McCone's usual style, with
lots of hints at something big but relatively little actual payoff.
(Which would have been fine, I don't mind the occasional small-scale
"domestic" story, except that the hints were there.)
It's still decent; Mullar is a competent writer, and there's a great
deal going on on a personal level even if the reasons for it seem
artificial. But by the standards of the series this isn't a highlight
for me.