From Booklist
V. I. Warshawski, perhaps the most popular of the "new breed" of female private investigators, is back in what is without a doubt her best adventure yet, a complex, authentic, and gripping story that shows our heroine at both her bravest and most vulnerable. V. I. is not afraid to take on controversial subjects--spouse and child abuse, the homeless, incest, interracial couples, self-help groups, and alternative lifestyles. Nor is she afraid of taking pot shots at corrupt politicians, big government, political coverups, and the idle rich. This time out, she's up against all of the above and more as part of a group of community activists helping the homeless, the helpless, and the heartbroken. Trouble is, for every do-gooder, there's a crooked politician or corrupt official who's using the system to get rich quick. When one of V. I.'s do-gooder friends is murdered, V. I. is convinced the victim's law-prof husband is the killer. But the more she digs, the more confusing and convoluted the case becomes. Before it's over, V. I. is mugged, shot, burned, battered, and bruised; the whole of the Chicago police force is mad at her; she's offended at least one influential senator; and a giant agricultural conglomerate is ready to sue her. Good thing V. I. is brave, brash, tough, resilient, good-hearted, and so darn bent on stamping out injustice that she survives it all. A whopping good story that will have Paretsky's millions of fans screaming for more. Emily Melton
From Kirkus Reviews
Chicago PI V.I. Warshawski (Guardian Angel, 1992, etc.) discovers frail, frightened Tamar Hawkings and her three children living in the rat-infested basement of V.I.'s soon-to-be-abandoned office building. Seeking help for the family from the city's shelter organizations, V.I. comes across some odd information about a small group of women in construction trades seeking a contract to build low-cost housing. Something is going on that connects one- time radical Jasper Heccomb; Alec Gantner, a senator's son whose family has megaholdings in an agricultural concern called Gant-Ag; banker Donald Blakely; and law professor Fabian Messenger. An invitation to the Messengers' party brings V.I. into close contact with Fabian's dysfunctional family; and in the party's aftermath, wife Deirdre is found bludgeoned to death in V.I.'s office while teenaged daughter Emily has vanished with two younger brothers in tow. Chaos is furthered by flooded tunnels deep below Chicago's streets, a theatrical backdrop for V.I.'s rescue of the children, with help from valiant neighbor Contreras. The wind-up of the big scam, on Gant-Ag's airfield, is equally melodramatic, ending an overstuffed saga that's as much fun to read as your newspaper on a bad day. Strictly overkill for a heroine gone from hard-edged to hard- bitten and a creative writer on a self-indulgent rampage. (Literary Guild main selection; Mystery Guild selection; author tour) -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
