Booking In: A Crang Mystery

Toronto lawyer Crang's innate inquisitiveness and connections to the criminal underworld tend to stir up trouble. In this seventh series outing (after Keeper of the Flame), he is asked by antiquarian book dealer Fletcher Marshall to investigate the theft of two valuable manuscripts. Part of the puzzle is determining which manuscript was the main target of the burglary. One may be the product of Victorian forgers, while the other concerns a noted Canadian author and his macho conflicts with writer Norman Mailer. As Crang probes further, the case turns deadly. Meanwhile, he and his associates also must cure Marshall of his horrendous halitosis. Fascinating lore about forgeries and fraud in the rare-book world make for engrossing reading, as do the likable characters and a story line leavened with humor. Crang's personality may remind some readers of iconic private investigators such as Robert Parker's Spenser.