Book Review: Washington Masquerade by Warren Adler
Disclaimer: I received this book as part of a Goodreads giveaway on the premise that I would review it.
When Adam Burns, a vitriolic newspaper columnist who savaged the U.S. President at every opportunity, is found dead under suspicious circumstances, the media immediately picks up the “government conspiracy” theory and runs with it. Washington, D.C. cop Fiona Fitzgerald must solve the case before the administration goes up in flames.
This is the eighth Fiona Fitzgerald book; I have not read the previous ones. The first chapter is told from the perspective of Mr. Burns, explaining some of his motivations. This may be a standard format for the series, but in this case I think the reader would be better served by skipping the chapter to enjoy learning the information along with the police officers. I figured out the solution to the mystery far too soon.
That said, this is a pretty solid police procedural with some high-octane political content. It’s transparently clear that the president is supposed to be Obama, but names of most high government officials are never given for reasons that will become obvious. Fiona’s gimmick is that she was born into DC society, so can move in higher circles than most cops. For this story, she’s given a new partner, Isadore Silverman, a black Jewish man who uses Talmudic reasoning to help him solve crimes.
There’s some scattered rough language, but towards the end there’s a lot of it and some slut-shaming coming from one of the characters.
There are a couple of proofreading errors, and a few instances of dialogue that can’t be tracked to a specific speaker in the conversation because of poor paragraphing.
Overall, a decent enough mystery, recommended for those who like the Washington political setting.
