Death in a research library leads Dick on a trail of intrigue, a 50-years-past suicide, and lost love
Words are humanity's most versatile tool, and our civilization could not exist without them. Stung together, they can be stronger than steel or as light as dreams. We use them to teach, and to learn, and to record our past.
Libraries are the repositories of workds, and I think it's because I have always been aware of the power of words that I find libraries so fascinating.
But just like the books they house, libraries sometimes have secrets within, and secrets are not always good things. While we use words to record facts, we also use them, consciously or unconsciously, to record ourselves. Writers of fiction, particularly,reflect their innermost selves and their innermost secrets through their words. Perhaps that's why they polish them so. To them, words are paper mirrors.
* * *
The phone rang just as I was finishing the crossword puzzle and thinking about having another cup of coffee.
"Hardesty Investigations," I said, picking up the phone, as always, on the second ring. The voice on the other end was taut as a violin string. "We have another one," it said.
Damn!
Well, before I get into details, a little background might be in order. It had started about two months earlier....
Professional Reviews
The Paper Mirror
(Excerpt) "The Paper Mirror," the tenth book in the Dick Hardesty mystery series, displays the development of the author, Dorien Grey, as his plotting and writing become increasingly skilled. While setting ut all the clues to the mystery quite fairly, he is not above dragging a few small fish of an inteesting hue across the path of the reader. The plot is well constructed and intriguing. His characters are, as ever, skillfully drawn. -- Denise Pickles, www. marmartin.com.au
Splendid Entertainment
As always, Dorien Grey offfers splendid entertainment and enough plot twists for the book to qualify as rotini. It's hard to decide which is more fun, working with Hardesty to solve the riddle or watching him adjust to parenthood. --Elizabeth Burton, author of "Dreams of Darkness" and "Shadow of the Scorpion"
Best to Date
"The Paper Mirror," a Dick Hardesty Mystery by Dorien Grey, is his best to date. As is found in other writings offered by this writer, the characters are clever, often connniving, excellently materminded, and thouroughly developed. I particularly enjoyed the repartee between gay partners Hardesty and Jonathan as they settle into their roles as new parents to an energetic youngster. "The Paper Mirror" is an excellent choice for any who enjoy a good mystery, excellent presentation, and fine wirting. --Mollie Martin, www.angelfire.com/ok4
