The Frumious Bandersnatch

November 3, 2003
Amazingly, MWA Grand Master McBain remains as fresh and sharp-edged as ever in his 53rd 87th Precinct novel (after 2003's Fat Ollie's Book
), which takes on the culture of celebrity. Bison Records' self-styled impresario Barney Loomis runs into a snag in his effort to catapult his newest performer, Tamar Valparaiso, to stardom. As Tamar is lip-synching the provocative video of her first album aboard a rented yacht, two men in Saddam Hussein and Yasir Arafat masks snatch her before a stunned audience. With his usual expert pacing, McBain alternates the action among a number of characters, including the kidnappers and Tamar; series stalwart Steve Carella, who must endure political maneuvering within a Joint Task Force of police bigwigs and FBI agents; and misogynist Ollie Weeks and his new amour, Det. Patricia Gomez. McBain injects enough humor to leaven the underlying tragedy—the fate of a vulnerable, talented young woman. Although it's soon obvious who's behind Tamar's kidnapping, we don't read McBain for surprising denouements but for his true-to-life dialogue, skill at defining characters and effortless transitions. The Lewis Carroll theme provides an extra level of enjoyment. (Jan. 2)

FYI:
McBain is only one of two Americans (the other being Sara Paretsky) to win a Diamond Dagger, the highest award from the British Crime Writers Association.

October 15, 2003
Tamar Valparaiso, would-be hip-hop diva, is poised on the precipice of stardom. Her new video is set for release, and her recording company has rented a yacht for a chic launch party. Tamar is performing a live version of her rape-fantasy video when two armed intruders snatch her and escape on a small speedboat. Steve Carella and Cotton Hawes of the 87th Precinct catch the call. There are dozens of eyewitnesses, but the kidnappers leave no trace. Even though kidnappings are usually the FBI's purview, Tamar's promoter coerces the feds into keeping Carella and Hawes on the case. Meanwhile, the kidnapping is replayed thousands of times on cable, and the talking heads debate the propriety of Tamar's video, in which a potential rape victim repels her attacker in a fantasy sequence. In 48 hours, Tamar has morphed from wanna-be to megastar in the wake of a potential tragedy. As Carella and Hawes track down the kidnappers, McBain--the godfather of the police procedural--skewers cable news, the music industry, FBI bureaucrats, the current presidential administration, and the Patriot Act. It's difficult to praise a single 87th Precinct novel as demonstrably better than the preceding 52, so let's just say the current case is always the best, but only until the next one.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)

December 1, 2003
If things go right, Tamar Valparaiso will soon be the next big hip-hop star. At the launch party for her new CD, she is performing an abbreviated version of the dance from her video when she is brutally kidnapped in front of important industry types and the filming cameras of Channel Four News. Steve Carella and Cotton Hawes of the 87th Precinct are called out, but soon the Joint Task Force-made up of FBI agents and elite detectives from the city's police force-takes charge. Barney Loomis, the CEO of Bison Records, is willing to pay anything to get Tamar back, and he wants Carella on the task force. In this latest entry in his long-running 87th Precinct series, McBain, winner of the Mystery Writers' coveted Grand Master Award, shows why he is still the best. The kidnapping becomes the showcase for police procedure, while the rest of the novel deals with the private lives of the cops. McBain's writing is tight, his characters believable. Just when readers think they have it all figured out, McBain proves that he is still capable of a shocker. For all fiction collections. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 9/15/03.]-Jo Ann Vicarel, Cleveland Heights-University Heights P.L.

Copyright 2003 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2003
Rescuing about-to-break-out hip-hopper Tamar Valparaiso from a kidnapper.

Copyright 2003 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.