Diamonds for the Dead

At the start of Orloff's thought-provoking debut, Josh Handleman, who's separated from his wife in San Francisco, returns home to Reston, Va., to take care of his late father's estate. Josh is shocked to learn that not only was his father, Abe, a secret multimillionaire who generously helped many charities, in particular the Reston Hebrew Home, but the fatal fall Abe took might not have been accidental. He also discovers that Abe collected diamonds, which have vanished, as well as a boarder still in the house—Kassian, a scruffy, elderly Russian overly fond of vodka. Josh is consumed with curiosity after his father's best friend, Lev Yurishenko, accuses Kassian of killing Abe. Josh's hunt for the missing diamonds and a possible killer leads to more disturbing revelations as well as some emotional healing courtesy of the sister of an old high school classmate. Likable characters more than compensate for some slow pacing. (Apr.)