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A Trouble of Fools (Carlotta Carlyle Mysteries)
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Product Description
Linda Barnes’s A Trouble of Fools is the book that introduced readers to ex-Boston cop and PI Carlotta Carlyle, who knows trouble when she sees it like the old Irish lady offering a grand in cash to find her brother...
TROUBLE…
Since being bounced from the Boston police for insubordination after six years of service, Carlotta Carlyle has set up shop as a private investigator ready to deal with anything from lost pets to substantially grander larcenies. Though Carlotta, a six-foot-tall, redheaded ex cop, part-time cabbie, and neophyte private eye, works out of her home, it’s rare that clients stop by unannounced. Especially clients like the genteel, reserved, elderly spinster Miss Margaret Devens.
ALWAYS COMES…
With cash flow problems and a caseload so light that she’s taken to reading her cat’s mail, Carlotta accepts the case of Miss Devens’s missing brother Eugene. Oddly enough, Carlotta knew Eugene when they worked together back at Green and White Cab. As far as Carlotta sees it, this case should be a pinch—until two thugs looking for money send her client to the hospital.
WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT IT…
The old lady’s missing brother seems to have been involved in something much more dangerous than simply driving a cab. Carlotta is determined to do whatever it takes?work the cops, pose as a hooker, and even drive a cab again—to find Eugene before it’s too late.
“She is one of the most sparkling, most irresistible heroines ever to grace the pages of a whodunit.”
?Chicago Sun-Times
“All elements are skillfully woven together in a book that has just about everything.”
—Denver Post
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #379286 in Books
- Published on: 2006-06-27
- Released on: 2006-06-27
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Binding: Mass Market Paperback
- 240 pages
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Boston-based private eye Carlotta Carlyle is the newest creation of the author of the lively Michael Sprague mysteries. In addition to being red-haired, 61 tall, a former cabbie and an ex-cop, Carlotta is the sort of storyteller capable of enlisting readers' sympathies at the very outset. Her first adventure involves a missing person. An elderly Irish woman hires her to find her brother, Eugene, who has vanished from their home, leaving behind a mysterious cache of $13,000. Eugene's cronies, who, like himself, are drivers for a taxi fleet and secret sympathizers with the Irish cause, seem to be involved with a scheme in support of the IRA. Having once worked for the cab company herself, Carlotta hires on again to monitor their activities, an action that eventually sets her at odds with a major drug ring, the FBI and a certain Mafia-connected former lover. All of the above learn that it's not wise to step on the toes of someone who wears size 11 shoes. Carlotta first made a brief appearance in a prize-winning short story called "Lucky Penny"; in this longer form, she's pure gold.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Moving from the popular Michael Spraggue series, Barnes has created Carlotta Carlyle, ex-cabbie, ex-policewoman, now private investigator. While looking for a missing cab driver, Carlyle stumbles upon some strange goings on at the taxi company. From the trashing of her client's house to a strange scam involving large sums of money, Carlyle moves through Boston until the threatening violence explodes when least expected. Barnes uses all of her finely honed technique to deliver an exciting book. JV
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Review
“Beautifully plotted, exciting, moving, and leavened with wit.”—Robert B. Parker
“Carlotta Carlyle is one of the most refreshing private eyes to come along. [She] is the spunky sort of gal you’d like to have for a sister or best friend. She’s loyal, warm, persistent, intelligent, savvy—all the right stuff...[a] challenging and inventive plot.”—Indianapolis News
“Carlotta bristles with vitality and a slightly sardonic view of herself and the world. She’s smart but not smart-alecky; the plot is bizarre but never beyond reason. Engaging and engrossing all the way.”
—Kirkus Reviews
“You will be caught up in Carlotta’s adventures. For she is one of the most sparkling, most irresistible heroines ever to grace the pages of a whodunit…it’s top-drawer all the way.”—Chicago Sun-Times
“Even in the detective-glutted Boston area, it’s hard to miss Carlotta Carlyle…this is an author who’s nobody’s fool when it comes to writing a slick lively story that’s all in good fun.”—St. Petersburg Times
Customer Reviews
Introduces Carlotta, pretty typical female PI book
Having read and enjoyed several of the later Carlotta Carlye books, I thought I'd check out this first book. As a first book goes, it's solid but not stunning. Carlotta and her supporting cast (crazy artist roomie, cab drivers, "little sister") are all interesting enough. The plot seems a bit contrived. The blues music interest doesn't quite ring true. It's as if the author was told to give your character and interesting hobby.
Bottom line -- Don't go out of your way to read this book but at the same time, don't let it put you off from later books in the series, some of which are great reads.
Read these in order!
One does a disservice to an author/series if one reads book #3 or #4 or #5 and then goes back to read #1. Characters develop, relationships develop, and authors develop. I read this first Carlotta Carlyle book before I read the rest, and enjoyed it just fine. Yes, the following books get better as they go along, but you'll have missed out on several important relationship/character points if you don't read this one before you read the others.
Totally Satisfying
If this book were a film, it would definitely be noir. I imagined everything in black and white throughout my quick gallop through these wonderful pages.
Having never read a Linda Barnes mystery before, I was enthralled by the gritty language, the down-and-dirty description of the Boston streets, the no-nonsense tone, and above all, the main character, PI Carlotta Carlyle.
Written in the mid 80s, this book is not outdated in the least. The plot concerns a group of Irish-American cabbies, all over 50, who may be running money and guns for the now-severly-restricted IRA. Accidentally stumbling into their activities while investigating a missing persons case, Carlotta finds herself in very deep trouble--the kind that can easily end in murder.
This is a perfect book to devour one lazy afternoon while shutting the rest of the world out. I loved it, and intend to sample more Linda Barnes mysteries from now on.
