From Publishers Weekly
In 1929, Father Ronald A. Knox set down the guidelines for writing good detective fiction. His 10 "commandments"no "Chinamen" allowed; only one secret passage; no supernatural agenciesto name a few, have been deliberately broken by Skvorecky, writing in a cleverly provocative vein. The result is a genuinely innovative, brain-teaser of a novel that pokes fun at American pulp fiction. Unlike The Mournful Demeanor of Detective Boruvka , a mystery that was set almost entirely in Prague, this collection of stories has an international flavor. Lt. Boruvka is featured in the first and last story; the real star is Eve Adam, a sexy Czech nightclub singer on tour in Europe and the U.S. At each port of call she's called upon to solve crimes of passionusing her brain cells and sometimes a little bit morethat the local "shamuses" and cops can't get a handle on. A typical story finds Adam on the trail of a young, naive woman who has been kidnapped; she's also a fundamentalist, and a brilliant mathematician to boot. Czechoslovakian exile and Canadian resident Skvorecky ( Dvorak in Love ) is a skillful writer with an international range. Two more Boruvka mysteries are in the works.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
As she performs in cities around the world, Eve Adam, a Czech nightclub singer and female Holmes, gets involved in and helps resolve ten intricate crimes motivated mostly by sexual jealousy. Besides identifying the criminal, the reader is asked to decide which of the ten well-known rules for writing detective fiction is being violated. The premise is interesting, some stories are cleverly constructed, and the author's wit and gift for characterization are evident. However, most of the stories are marred by convoluted plots full of bizarre coincidences that tend to annoy rather than challenge. Unimaginative translation does not help. This is the second of a projected four-volume series of Skvorecky's detective stories, which began with The Mournful Demeanour of Lieutenant Boruvka ( LJ 8/87).
- Marie Bednar, Pennsylvania State Univ. Lib., University ParkCopyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.
