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chargoe's review
3.0
i really appreciate this book as a pioneer in female detective works. the only thing i really didn’t like is that it didn’t pass the bechdel test :/ really good plot though!!
nutti72's review
4.0
This is the 1st in a series. This is a must read for any fans of V.I. Warshawski or Kinsey Millhone. Sharon is a P.I. working for a legal aid service All Souls. The problem becomes when a group of local businesses are being vandalized in the hopes of getting them to sell their property. One of the business owners in Joan the de facto leader of the business association. Can Sharon sole Joan's murder before the SFPD put a kobosh on her investigation? Or will she & Detective Marcus end up as more than friendly rivals?
amalyndb's review against another edition
4.0
Strong female private detective Sharon McCone gets involved in a murder investigation when one of her cooperative firm’s clients is found dead in her antique shop. Real estate deals, reproductions, blackmail and smuggling swirl around in this whodunnit.
nabilah's review against another edition
2.0
Decent but there is nothing to rave about. It is just a passable way to pass time.
chriswolak's review against another edition
2.0
I read this book because I'm told it is the first mystery with a female PI (1979), beyond the cozy genre. It was an interesting read, but toward the end I wanted it done though. The antagonism between Sharon Malone and the cop was a bit over-done in the "oh, geez, they're actually attracted to one another" mold. I think it would be interesting to read this whole series in order to see how Malone develops. It has to be fascinating to see the changes in how women are perceived and "accepted" into a non-traditional role develops throughout this series. It makes me think of Charlies Angels and the development of the mystery genre on TV and books as they relate to women. Did TV help the novel or did the novel help spur on the portrayal of women?
alanfederman's review against another edition
3.0
This is the first in the Sharon McCone series - a private detective plying her trade in San Francisco. The setting was as much a character to me as the detective and the criminals. The story centers around the murder of a woman who owns an antique shop in a rapidly gentrifying neighborhood in SF. There are all kinds of potential killers - greedy real estate developers, crooked art smugglers and jealous lovers. The story moves quickly and there's no shortage of twists and turns. I can't wait to read more in this series to see how the characters grow and develop - one of the many joys of mysteries!
missmarketpaperback's review against another edition
3.0
I read this book alongside a few other mysteries and I’d say this is more of a Veronica Mars than a Kinsey Millhone. The narrator is young and her narrative is rarely self-referential. Her love interest is just awful. I loved the art side to the mystery and the horrible suspects. I’d read more.