[.ca] Blacklist (ISBN 1594130469)

From Amazon.com:
Privilege, politics, and perfidy jointly propel the circuitous plot of Blacklist, Sara Paretsky's 11th novel featuring tenacious Chicago private-eye V.I. Warshawski. By the time this story runs its course, V.I. will have harbored an alleged Arab terrorist, resurrected the ghosts of America's 1950s anti-Communist hysteria, and questioned the integrity of a man she once admired "to the point of hero worship." In other words, it's a typical case for this hard-headed, sarcastic, and perpetually sleep-deprived sleuth. Still suffering from "exhaustion of the spirit" in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, V.I. is hired to find out who may be sneaking into a vacated suburban mansion. Geraldine Graham, the home's 91-year-old former owner, who still lives nearby, claims she's seen lights in the attic at night. Our heroine suspects this is simply a bid by the wealthy dowager for greater attention, but agrees to do some nocturnal prowling--only to stumble (literally) across the body of a dead black journalist, Marcus Whitby, in the estate's ornamental pond and encounter a teenage girl fleeing the scene. The girl turns out to be Catherine Bayard, the granddaughter of Calvin Bayard, an unapologetically liberal book publisher who survived a hounding by the U.S. House Un-American Activities Committee in the '50s without being blacklisted like so many of his authors. Digging deeper, V.I. learns that Whitby was doing research for a book about an African-American dancer and anthropologist who had enjoyed Bayard's support before she too was branded a Communist. Was Whitby killed en route to visit Bayard, one of Graham's neighbors--and a man who has strangely vanished from public view? And is there any connection between this murder and the disappearance of an Egyptian dishwasher, or the recent demise of a right-wing attorney and Bayard foe, in whose apartment V.I. is attacked by an intruder? Except for a few astounding turns of luck (including the 11th-hour discovery of a revealing audiotape left in a car's player), Paretsky rolls out a credible yarn here, enriched by meticulous character development and an agreeably ambiguous conclusion. The author's intention to link McCarthy-era abuses with post-9/11 government assaults on civil rights is obvious, without being didactic, and it adds currency to a fictional investigation that's already rife with sex, betrayal, and long-held secrets among the rich. It's good to see that V.I. the P.I. hasn't lost the compassion or righteousness that first made her attractive two decades ago, in Indemnity Only. --J. Kingston Pierce

Well-written mystery:
V.I. Warshawski is back at it as she is asked to investigate some mysterious activity in a deserted mansion. Her investigation leads to the discovery of a dead black journalist and suddenly she is thrown into the past histories of some of Chicago's wealthiest families. She discovers secrets long-hidden by prominent people and delves into the Communist "witch hunts" of the McCarthy era and the current crackdown on immigrants from the Middle East. Paretsky's political opinions, as voiced by her leading character, are all too apparent, but she does spin a multi-layered mystery with well-drawn characters. Paretsky's many fans should enjoy this one.

V. I. in top form, classy, sassy and spiritedý:
Dzien dobry, Sara Paretsky and Detective Warshawski... from a survivor - thank you for noting 9/11. So, V.I., you are off on another assignment in BLACKLIST. Hired by a long-time client, Darraugh Graham to investigate 'goings on' at his family's old home near Anodyne Park in New Solway. Darraugh's feisty mother Geraldine now lives in an apartment near the property and has seen lights in the attic of the empty house, imagination or fact? On the second late-night property stakeout, Detective Warshawski encounters a young teenage female heading toward the entry of the house. The teenager takes flight and escapes during pursuit, unfortunately. Giving chase, Detective V.I. falls into five feet of murky, weedy, pond water located on the property. As she rises out of the clay-like soil, she finds a drowned dead man; attempts CPR but to no avail. The dead man is identified as freelance reporter Marcus Whitby. Cause of death is listed as 'drowning' after consumption of alcohol, probably. His parents come to Chicago to claim the body and are eager to return home for burial ceremonies. Sister of Marcus engages V.I. to intervene for an autopsy to determine cause of death, officially. Why was he at the property? How come his automobile was not nearby? Why was there no identification on him other than a very wet matchbook and a pencil? Warshawski learns the identity of the teenage trespasser who is linked to an affluent Chicago family, a publishing firm owned by the Bayard's. Interrogation of young Ms. Bayard brings shallow results. The news media reports on the mysterious disappearance of a young, male Egyptian named Benjamin Sadawi. Added to the building suspense are reports of terrorist activities under investigation, adding fire and energy of implications wrought in BLACKLIST. And..., more turmoil runs amok when "authorities" want to gain access to student files in the elite Vina Fields Academy on Chicago's Gold Coast. The momentum builds with V.I. not deterred by any subtle hints or threats to her investigation. Suddenly, however, her employer Darraugh Graham instructs V.I. to put a halt to the investigation of the once family-owned property. Warshawski fans know that such moments of "halt commands" only provide fuel to V.I.'s detective energy. Meanwhile, Warshawski's love of her life, Morrell is on assignment in Afghanistan. To friend and neighbor, Mr. Contreras (God love him), V.I. is known as 'doll' or 'cookie', and he continues his vigil of watching over her. Providing chicken soup, and a breakfast of French toast with bacon to maintain her well-being. As always, Sara Paretsky gives credence to the story with well-described, scenic places in Chicago, lovable and not-so-lovable characters - some have been with Warshawski for years as others come and go. Along with the plots, questionable circumstantial deaths, and a not-to-be defeated Detective Warshawski, BLACKLIST will keep you reading through wonderfully captioned-chapters, such as: 'House of the Dead'; 'Crocodile In the Moat'; 'Stiffed at the Morgue'; 'Terrorist on the Run', and 'Shootout at the Eagle River Corral'. In true Paretsky definitive style, V.I. Warshawski continues with question upon question of what she is getting for responses -- sly, half-truth, no-truth answers. To readers - check out Sara Paretsky's website... www.SaraParetsky.com. Review based on 2003 hardcover. Recommended read: By A Spider's Thread by Laura Lippman for release in June 2004.

I enjoy this writer a lot,:
I am a huge fan of this fun series. I enjoy this genre and think that anyone who likes getting lost in a good book will also like it. Give it a try.

Better luck next time:
The writing quality itself is Paretsky's usual good stuff; however, I'm subtracting two stars: one because the politics got in the way of the story and one for the confusing cast of characters. Available blurbs cover the plot structure fairly comprehensively, but I'll try not to give away any "secrets". By the time the Egyptian kid enters the story directly, fairly far along in the book, I've forgotten exactly what he had "done" to deserve such attention from the Feds - aside from attending a suspect mosque on a regular basis. That aspect of the plot was handled in such an exaggerated manner that I had trouble suspending disbelief. The author might rebut that such a scenario "might be possible" under this draconian law. I'm not willing to agree. Frankly I'm surprised Paretsky was able to get away with so many supporting characters speaking with, basically, two voices among them: "privileged Caucasian person" and "well educated African-American". The members of each group were, for the most part, indistinguishable from each other after a while. Further confusing the reader in this long novel, the shadows of several deceased individuals are present. A scorecard was sorely needed; I checked to see if I'd missed a family tree chart at the beginning that might have helped me with this story. In summary: this would have worked better as two (briefer!) stories - one on the Patriot Act and one on buried secrets from the past. As others have said, the link between the 50's and today doesn't work well enough to hold the two plots together.

Above-average V.I.:
BLACKLIST is Parestsky's very fine homage to the late Ross Macdonald. VI Warshawski's investigation of a reporter's murder uncovers a cesspool of fifty-year-old family troubles: infidelities, intrigues, backstabbing, betrayal and general rich-folk cussedness -- but the book is marred by ham-fisted political "messages". But ride over that -- otherwise this is as good a tale as Paretsky has ever told. Which is to say, very, very good. Happy reading! Pete Tillman