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"Sara Paretsky follows her instant New York Times bestseller Fallout--her most widely read novel in years--with an extraordinary adventure that pits her acclaimed detective, V.I. Warshawski, against some of today's most powerful figures. Legendary sleuth V.I. Warshawski returns to the Windy City to save an old friend's nephew from a murder arrest. The case involves a stolen artifact that could implicate a shadowy network of international criminals. As V.I. investigates, the detective soon finds herself tangling with the Russian mob, ISIS backers, and a shady network of stock scams and stolen art that stretches from Chicago to the East Indies and the Middle East. In Shell Game, nothing and no one are what they seem, except for the detective herself, who loses sleep, money, and blood, but remains indomitable in her quest for justice"--… (more)
User reviews
Felix is implicated in a murder because his name and phone number are found in the victim's pocket, and there are no other obvious clues. Harmony's sister has disappeared, and Harmony herself escapes a violent home invasion by hiding in a large garbage bin. Vic is quickly drawn into the world of Syrian immigrants hiding from ICE agents and the near-Eastern world of archaeology and artifacts. We also spend non-quality time with Vic's ex and wonder how young she was to have married him!
Lots of action! Complex plotting! A new love interest for Vic! And V.I. herself, committed and dogged, pushed to her limit and still going.
Thank you, Early Reviewers for my copy. I now need to go back and read the two I've missed.
In this story, Paretsky and Warshawski take on the legal loan sharking operations of "Payday Lenders" as well as the Gestapo-like tactics of ICE ordered by our draft dodging and Neo-NAZI loving Commander-in-Chief.
It is a safe play that won't hurt sales of the book, since the vast majority of the loving supporters of our "Supreme Leader" who can read, only consume Russian published propaganda and conspiracy non-sense they send to one another.
Go get 'em Vic!
After work the next day Vic returns from a run with her dogs to find Harmony, her estranged niece, waiting for her. Harmony is frantic for help in finding her sister. Rose disappeared shortly after returning from a brief company-sponsored trip to a luxury resort in the Caribbean. The time required to address these urgent requests for help quickly threatens to overwhelm Vic’s resources.
Paretsky excels at creating complex, multifaceted mysteries and “Shell Game is an excellent example. Nevertheless, any author of a long-running series risks falling into a rut, and several themes appearing in “Shell Game” appear so often in her previous novels that they are becoming predictable. These include the non-paying client that V. I. takes on reluctantly as a favor to a friend or relative, the lone wolf investigator working with little or no help who soon suffers from sleep deprivation, the movement of the plot from one crisis to another, the elderly neighbor who is anxious to help but largely irrelevant, and the solicitous friend and physician who takes personal charge of patching her up after she is—invariably— injured.
Paretsky creates a world in which almost all of the strong central characters are positive, pro-social females. The male characters, mostly villains, are one-dimensional caricatures viewed only through Vic’s eyes.
One question that will immediately occur to readers is whether the requests to help Felix and to find Rose are completely independent or connected in some obscure manner. A connection hardly seems possible, but Paretsky deftly keeps us guessing, and in the end her nicely crafted resolution provides an answer to all our questions. Unfortunately, the impact of the climax is vitiated by Paretsky’s penchant for adding page after page of explanation regarding the who, what, and why.
Offsetting these too familiar elements to some extent are the excellent research, intricate plotting, and strong attention to detail. As a long-time reader of Paretsky’s V. I. Warshawski series I anticipate with pleasure her next offering while hoping for a fresh approach that avoids the now too-familiar plot elements that have become almost cliché.
I am glad she chose to set the story in Chicago once again, as V.I. Warshawski somehow seems like a fish out of water when she’s out of town. The archeological details of the story I found to be less than interesting. Though I love Mr. Contreras, I wonder how long she can continue with a character in his 90’s?
And dare I say it? Paretsky’s political views are front and center in this book.
Sara Paretsky is one of the true masters of the intelligent thriller and her latest, Shell Game, is no exception to this. Like many of her other books, underneath the murders and the disappearances is a financial scam and, at times, this slowed the story down as Warshawski explains eg. the risk and often downright fraud of 'pink' or penny stocks. The story revolves less around action until near the end and more about following the money trail. That Paretsky manages to keep the reader's attention without constant shoot 'em ups says much about her writing ability - she appeals to the reader's intelligence more than their emotions and provides a cracking good story while doing it.
Thanks to Edelweiss+ and William Morrow Publishers for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review
A mentor of V.I.W. needs her help when the police are strenuously trying to pin a murder on the mentor's nephew, Felix, who’s a member of an engineering group that includes Middle Eastern students. Felix doesn't trust VIW, and is hiding something important. Meanwhile, VIW's niece Harmony shows up with her own problem - her older sister Reno, who lives in Chicago, has disappeared, after a business trip that may have had its own shady doings. Trumpish rich men behave badly and are taking advantage where they ought not. VIW keeps pushing, and all the loose threads begin to weave together, with her awful and awfully arrogant ex-husband somehow involved. Her sharp wits and some derring-do lead to a satisfying result. Three stars, with a tip of the hat to her fans who undoubtedly would rate it higher.
One of the better in this series, I await the next.
I read along & I think, why have I not kept up with VI Warshawski books? She's a true hero & the stories are so relevant to us. She stiffens my back against the forces of evil. & then I keep reading and I am reminded of why. The stock characters who have become a series of
Seeing the title, I thought it might be about shell corporations--and it is a bit, but the term shell game is
I thought early in the series, V. I. had little family still living. Suddenly two of her ex-husband's nieces show up--nieces we've never heard about before in the series. The ex-husband reappears also (after being mostly absent in the last few installments). I do remember hearing about Lottie's brother, Hugh but not that Hugh had children or grandchildren--so when the story opens with Felix Herschel it left me wondering who Felix was.
Once again, V.I. ignores her paying clients. It makes me wonder how she stays solvent with her business. In this book, Darragh Graham's assistant has to remind/prompt her that a report is overdue. She must really have impressed Darragh since he loans her the use of his jet later on in the book.
V.I. Warshawski is called out in the middle of the night when her close friend
After receiving an anonymous tip, Warshawski quickly learn the identity of the murdered man. After she searches his apartment, she finds her first lead and crosses paths with the thugs who continue to bedevil her throughout her investigation. Her findings take her to a local university where she learns intriguing information about the victim's overseas activities and his interest in priceless antiquities. How all of this adds up to murder is unclear, but V.I. doggedly tracks down clues despite being stretched thin by two cases and demanding clients.
V.I. is also still trying to find out what happened to Reno. The employees at Rest EZ are less than forthcoming about what happened to Reno on the employee retreat and V.I. begins digging into the corporation's background. The business ownership is murky and V.I. is very curious about their connection to other shadowy corporations.
With danger lurking around every corner, Shell Game is a thrilling mystery with a topical storyline. V.I.'s investigation is a bit slow at first but once the pieces of the puzzle begin to fall into place, she gradually begins to suspect the two cases might be linked. With plenty of action, Sara Paretsky brings this complex and intriguing mystery to a twisty-turny conclusion. Fans of the genre are sure to enjoy this newest addition to the V.I. Warshawski series.