Fearful Symmetry
Morag Joss
Dell, Jun 2005, $6.99
ISBN: 0440242428

At the Oxfam store in Bath, septuagenarian Imogen Beven puts out an old fur piece for sale. Animal rights activists Anna Ward-Partigan and Bren kick up a fuss to get it removed from the shelf. Imogen tells the irate duo to leave. As they do he says he will get even with the SOB. Not long afterward, Imogen receives a package in the mail. When she goes to open it, the package explodes. She dies in the hospital.

Detective Chief Inspector Andrew Poole leads the investigation into the letter bomb homicide. He is distracted by his estrangement with his wife Valerie; she punishes him for an alleged affair with his beloved internationally acclaimed cellist Sara Selkirk that he wants but has not acted on out of fears of hurting his three children. Andrew learns of the Oxfam incident. He interviews Anna, who admits Bren vowed he would get even, has since vanished, and demands she see her father a judge as her animal rights idealism vanished once she understands the trouble she is in. A second homicide forces Sara into the investigation.

FEARFUL SYMMETRY is a fabulous tale that starts off as a pure English police procedural, but towards the middle becomes an amateur sleuth investigation. The transition is effortlessly handled so that the audience accepts Sara's involvement without blinking. Andrew is an intriguing protagonist struggling with his growing love for Sara, but trying to remain faithful to his wife. Czech composer Herve Pretescu accentuates the personal drama when he meets Valerie and already knows Sara, but in turn somewhat overwhelms the mystery. As with the finely tuned FUNERAL MUSIC, Morag Joss provides a delightful mystery that looks deep into the key quartet.

Harriet Klausner