Booking In

Booking In is the 7th outing for lawyer/fixer and sometimes sleuth Crang.  He's a likeable, intelligent jazz fanatic and martini lover.  He is stable and has a great relationship with a woman he cares for and a house and home life he enjoys.

He has a loyal group of friends and associates with particularly 'interesting' (not necessarily strictly legal) talents which play a part in his freelance consulting.  When one of his legal client's safe gets burgled and some potentially very valuable documents are stolen, he calls in his friends, a former safe-cracker and a burglar, to help figure out who/what/how (and maybe why).
The secondary cast of characters include some memorable comic relief and provide a foil for Crang's witty repartee and occasional fisticuffs.
There are several interwoven stories and the way they're resolved form the basis for a really solid mystery.  The writing is top notch and the characterizations and dialogue are very well written and a lot of fun to read. It's cleverly written and the denouement is satisfying.

I just really enjoyed reading this book.  As a bonus, there are a lot of great jazz, literature and poetry references.  Well worth a read! Anyone who enjoys Robert Parker's Spenser books, or John D. MacDonald's Travis McGee books will definitely find something to please with these books.  I read Booking In as a standalone, you get all the necessary background without having to read the other books first.

Four stars

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher.