From Publishers Weekly
Neil Hamel, the brisk Albuquerque attorney with a distinctly Southwestern spiritual side, makes her sixth appearance, after The Lies That Bind, in this clever, winning tale. Parrots mate for life, which is more than Hamel's client has done: Terrance Lewellan, a portly corporate raider who sports a testosterone patch, is about to divorce Deborah Dumaine, his flamboyant stiletto-heeled wife, who is a renowned anthropologist. But Dumaine is now missing, along with Perigee, the better half of a pair of rare indigo macaws the couple own. It's the one with the beak Terrance wants recovered, and he points Neil toward a sleazy parrot smuggler named Wes Brown, whom he thinks has kidnapped them both. Traveling to the desert to make a ransom drop, Neil wonders whether her client, who refuses to call in the authorities, is involved in his wife's disappearance. Her concerns set up intriguing tensions, but the parrots steal this show, rendering Albuquerque and its human inhabitants pale in comparison. Hamel's Native American spiritualism may be overdone, but it is tempered by her appealingly wry observations as she reflects upon life's plain brown birds and their responses to their more gaudily hued cousins. Author tour.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Albuquerque lawyer Neil Hamel is sensible, smart, and tough. So why does she take a case involving an eccentric millionaire, his missing wife, and a kidnapped parrot? Easy. Terrance Lewellen, a good ol' Texan with mucho bucks, hires Neil to find his missing wife, noted anthropologist Deborah Dumaine. The only clues are a mysterious tape recording, a missing indigo macaw, and an obscure ad in the personals section of the local paper. Lewellen is convinced that his wife--and the valuable bird--have been kidnapped by Wes Brown, a notorious parrot smuggler, but Neil thinks Lewellen's impending divorce from Deborah and the fact that Deborah's sister has the hots for Terrance may implicate the grieving husband. Then Lewellen turns up dead. Not only does Neil eventually solve the case, she also ends up with her own pet parrot. An entertaining story, a spunky heroine, and some appealing glimpses of Southwest flora, fauna, and folklore make this a good choice for most mystery collections.
Emily Melton
