By E.B. Boatner – June 1, 2023
Merry Bell, leaving pricey Vancouver for hometown Livingsky, Saskatchewan, seeks former boss Nathan Sharpe’s permission to affiliate his firm’s name with her own detective agency. Sharpe’s OK, but conflicted: earlier, he’d heard Merry killed local MD Elliott Vanstone. Reaching Livingsky, Merry finds she’s too broke for either home or office. Bidulka’s knack for character-creation ensures Merry encounters plenty of netherside dwellers before scoring a landlord (Gerald Drover), rents, for $70, Drover’s junkyard house (“not fit for rats on crack”) and a case–Drover’s arson charge. Anonymous notes, lethal attention from Livingsky’s power-elite, accusation by Det. Sgt Greyeyes of murder. Of Vanstone; Merry’s surgeon for her transition. Merely the tip of what awaits you in this first of Bidulka’s proposed trilogy concerning Miss Merry Bell. Enjoy!