cover image Deal Killer: A Darby Farr Mystery

Deal Killer: A Darby Farr Mystery

Vicki Doudera. Midnight Ink (www.midnightinkbooks.com), $14.99 trade paper (336p) ISBN 978-0-7387-3429-3

Doudera’s well-crafted fifth Darby Farr mystery (after 2013’s Final Settlement) takes realtor Darby to New York City for what is supposed to be a joyous reunion with Miles Porter, an investigative journalist and the current love of Darby’s life. However, soon after arriving, she discovers that Miles is suspected in the murder of Alec Rodin, a Russian businessman whose much younger fiancée, Natalia Kazakova, is taking a journalism class from him. Alec, who believed Natalia might expose Russian state secrets for a class writing assignment, was discovered by Miles breaking into his office soon before being stabbed to death in an alley. Determined to clear Miles’s name, Darby begins investigating the wealthy residents of Central Park Place, Miles’s apartment building. The more she learns, the more the reader will feel compelled to keep turning the pages before reaching the final revelations. (Apr.)