Blaze Away

British policemen Harpur and Iles are at it again in this newest of five books availiable from Severn House.  Their method of 'setting a thief to catch a thief' makes for plots rich in irony and Bill James exhibits a gift for writing dialog and scenes 'sending up' snobbery and social stereotypes.

"Blaze Away' adds a layer of frustrated aspiration and human hope to a romp of a plot.  Drug distributor Ralph Ember has a burning desire to improve society through the collection and display of Fine Art in his drinks club.  Along with his reflections on the improving nature of Art, Ralph institutes a set of rules for member behavior:  the key one is 'No Weapons In the Monty."

His greatest obstacle is posed by his clientele.  They are the dirt of the underworld although one of them, Gordon Loam, comes from a decent family long into decay.  Gordon is desperate to hang onto some vestige of faded prestige; to demonstrate that he is a man worthy of respect.  Gordon put paid to that when he got drunk and began blazing away at an enlarged reproduction of William Blake's "Marriage of Heaven and Hell'.  Ralph has been using the art to lessen the visual impact of some armor plate protection he installed in the club between the entrance door and his office cubby near the bar.

Against this background an art heist is being planned targeting Jack Lamb, a highly successful but dodgy art collector and dealer.  Over the years he has been a key part of Harpur and Iles' crime control system.  They turn a benevolent eye toward Jack's operations in return for his top-quality criminal intelligence about truly unsavory criminals and their intentions.  Visits to Jack's country estate, Darien, make for lively satire about connoisseurship and commerce in the world of Fine Art.

Characters introduced in the novel prove endlessly entertaining:  arts 'babe' Lin Rossol is climbing the career ladder in the world of dodgy acquisitions.  Jack Lamb's mother is an often-divorced, tough-minded woman who lives a pretty good life in America and in Britain.  She is staying with Jack at the time the plot is unfolding.  Lin and her  partners introduce another criminal group and another set of hopes and aspirations to complicate things.  There won't be 'enough' to go around for every one so...how will events work out?