Fiddler and Fiora are back, and Busted Flush's got 'em. In 1985, the writing team of Ann and Evan Maxwell began a series about a private-eye named Fiddler and his ex-wife, Fiora. Eventually the series totaled nine books, the first of which was Just Another Day in Paradise. The series was a big hit with both readers and reviewers, but it's been out of print for years. Now, David Thompson at Busted Flush Press is bringing back some of the books, which is going to make a lot of readers happy.
Fiddler has a murky past, having partnered with his drug-smuggling uncle Jake, and he has plenty of money. He's not looking for work. He just fiddles around, and he would even play a real fiddle if he could stand it. Because the sounds he hears with his ears don't match the perfection he hears in his head, though, he doesn't play. Instead he helps people out, Fiora in this case. While they might not get along in some way, they still love each other, and when Fiora asks Fiddler to help her twin brother out of a mess, he agrees, not that he wants to.
Fiddler soon finds out that the mess is much worse than it first appeared, and it involves the KGB, the FBI, U. S. Customs, and even a bunch of tough Vietnamese. The plot is of the Silicon Valley variety. The McGuffin is a high-tech machine that the Russians need and that no one wants them to have. But the Russians, in the form of Volker, Fiora's lover and a memorable villain, wind up with Fiora. Volker will kill her if he doesn't get the machine.
Fiddler is tough, resourceful, and competent. Fiora is beautiful and smart. Maxwell keeps turning up the tension, and the book doesn't pause for breath. If you're not acquainted with the series, this is a great time to change that. If you remember it fondly, now you can read it again in a good-looking trade paperback edition. Check it out.
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