1992 historical detection, fourth in Greenwood's Phryne Fisher
series (1920s flapper detective in Australia). As Phryne is driving
home one night, someone shoots out her windscreen. As the gunfight
moves on, she gets out of the car to find an injured young man, who
dies in her arms.
It's less of the usual murder plot than has been usual for
Phryne, and a lesser woman might dismiss it as a falling-out among
anarchists, but Phryne is offended and takes up the case. She also
goes looking for a young woman who went missing after being turned
away from a convent. Séances and incest follow.
There is some infodumping of Baltic politics in the wake of the
Russian revolution, necessary to get a handle on the various factions;
there's also more abuse of women, something of a theme in the series
but one that's generally handled pretty well.
The mysteries themselves are well-handled, not as simplistic as in
some of the other books, though this certainly isn't a series for the
dedicated puzzle-story fan; it's more of a blend of historical
research, shocking behaviour, and fabulous dresses, with incidental
crime to be solved. Followed by The Green Mill Murder.
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