Summary | Excerpt | Reviews | Read-Alikes | Genres & Themes | Author Bio
Critics' Opinion:
Readers' Opinion:
First Published:
Jul 1999, 320 pages
Paperback:
Jul 2000, 336 pages
Palm Beach private investigator Archy McNally takes on the murder of a socialite and uncovers a thorny tangle of blackmail and deceit, south Florida style. Vincent Lardo continues the series started by Lawrence Sanders.
Playboy Geoffrey Williams is dead. But it's not a search for the killer that brings Archy McNally to the case; the lovely Melva Williams readily admits to the crime passionnel. After finding Geoff in a precarious position with an attractive young lady, she pulled the trigger on husband number two. It sounds like an open-and-shut case for McNally & Son's Department of Discreet Inquiries, until Melva asks Archy to shield her daughter, Veronica, from the press and paparazzi. Gallant Archy takes the case--and escorts grown-up and gorgeous Veronica home to the McNally manse. Rumors fly, and some of them may be true.
But Veronica is no damsel in distress, and she's certainly not sorry her stepfather is in the grave. And when her story doesn't match Melva's, which doesn't match Geoff's, Archy realizes he does indeed have a dilemma on his hands. Someone's lying, and the one person who knows the truth--Geoff's perky playmate--got away.
A delectable combination of high society and high jinks, and featuring some of the most eccentric characters ever to populate Florida's Gold Coast, McNally's Dilemma is as witty and charming as Archy McNally himself.
Following the death of Lawrence Sanders, Vincent Lardo was chosen by Sander's estate to continue the McNally series. This is his first McNally book.
I was perusing the lunch menu at the Pelican Club when I let out a howl, which was a bit uncouth even for that unpretentious lodge. This brought forth our waitress, Priscilla, a phenomenon as unusual as my outburst. To get Priscilla's attention is tantamount to hailing a taxi in the rain, as she would rather be gliding down a couturier's runway than punching the parquet at the Pelican.
"Steak tartare?" I exclaimed, still in a state of shock. The cuisine at the club is far from haute, and while I don't mind indulging in one of Leroy's thrombotic blue-plate specials, I draw the line on courting mad cow disease.
"Leroy is upgrading the menu," Priscilla explained.
I should say here that chef Leroy is Priscilla's brother and, along with their father and mother, Simon and Jasmine, the Pettibones are the African-American family of great charm who keep the Pelican aloft, as it were.
"What happened to the hamburger?" I asked. Leroy's hamburgers are among the best in Florida, ...
If you liked McNally's Dilemma, try these:
by David Rosenfelt
Published 2009
Attorney Andy Carpenter loves dogs, especially his own beloved Tara. When Andy discovers that this gentle dog is a key witness to a murder, it will take all the tricks he knows to convince a jury to take canine testimony seriously.
by Marshall Karp
Published 2007
Bringing a fresh duo of cops to the thriller set, The Rabbit Factory is both suspenseful and satiric; a taut mystery wrapped in sharp, comedic prose.
The House on Biscayne Bay
by Chanel Cleeton
As death stalks a gothic mansion in Miami, the lives of two women intertwine as the past and present collide.
The Stone Home
by Crystal Hana Kim
A moving family drama and coming-of-age story revealing a dark corner of South Korean history.
The Funeral Cryer by Wenyan Lu
Debut novelist Wenyan Lu brings us this witty yet profound story about one woman's midlife reawakening in contemporary rural China.
Your guide toexceptional books
BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
