Mad About the Boy?

 Mad About the Boy? (2008) by Dolores Gordon-Smith

The second in the Jack Haldean mystery series finds Jack in the middle of another murder "in the family." This time, his aunt and uncle are celebrating 25th anniversary with a gala ball and fireworks--provided by Lord Lyvenden--who switched from arms for the Great War to pyrotechnics to keep the funds rolling in. The occasion comes with some built-in tension. Isabelle (Jack's cousin) has been keeping his best friend Arthur on a string (Arthur is head over heels in love with her), but has recently become engaged to dashing Malcolm Smith-Fennimore (merchant banker, aviator, racing driver...that is to say, a ready-made hero). Arthur is miserable, on top of suffering from the effects of shell-shock. There is also trouble between Lord Lyvenden and his secretary, Tim Preston, whom he [Lyvenden] treats as a general gopher instead of a confidential secretary. And then there's the weird Russian bloke who shows up looking for Alfred Charnook, brother of Isabelle's mother and the black sheep of the family.

The party is completely ruined, however, when Preston is found dead--apparently from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Everything points to suicide. There's even a note beside the body that appears to support the theory. But Jack isn't convinced. And when Lord Lyvenden is stabbed to death and all evidence points to Arthur, Jack knows that something devilish is going on. Did someone have it in for both Lyvenden and his secretary? Could it have anything to do with the coded message Preston apparently saw by mistake? Is it a Russian plot? Or is it more complicated than that? And can Jack discover the true villain before Arthur is brought to trial and convicted?

Gordon-Smith evokes the spirit of Christie's thrillers in this one. It makes me think of The Secret of Chimneys and some of the Tommy & Tuppence adventures. There are Russian agents and secret meeting places and what seems like a code. There's Russian gold and Englishmen in tight places over money. There's even a little gun-running. Of course, the real question is what (if anything, this has to do with the murders). This is a grand adventure and lots of fun. I would love to rate it a bit higher--but this time the main culprit was fairly obvious even though their motive wasn't. Not quite as good as the debut of the series, but I am definitely eager to move on to Jack's next adventure. ★★★ and 1/2

First line: Arthur Stanton stubbed out his cigarette, peering anxiously through the haze of smoke at his reflection in the mirror.

Last lines: "Try asking anyone else," he said with a grin. "I'll forbid the banns."
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Deaths = 8 (five shot; one stabbed; one fell from height; one froze to death)