Tunnel Vision

/*STARRED REVIEW*/ V. I. Warshawski, perhaps the most popular of the "new breed" of female private investigators, is back in what is without a doubt her best adventure yet, a complex, authentic, and gripping story that shows our heroine at both her bravest and most vulnerable. V. I. is not afraid to take on controversial subjects--spouse and child abuse, the homeless, incest, interracial couples, self-help groups, and alternative lifestyles. Nor is she afraid of taking pot shots at corrupt politicians, big government, political coverups, and the idle rich. This time out, she's up against all of the above and more as part of a group of community activists helping the homeless, the helpless, and the heartbroken. Trouble is, for every do-gooder, there's a crooked politician or corrupt official who's using the system to get rich quick. When one of V. I.'s do-gooder friends is murdered, V. I. is convinced the victim's law-prof husband is the killer. But the more she digs, the more confusing and convoluted the case becomes. Before it's over, V. I. is mugged, shot, burned, battered, and bruised; the whole of the Chicago police force is mad at her; she's offended at least one influential senator; and a giant agricultural conglomerate is ready to sue her. Good thing V. I. is brave, brash, tough, resilient, good-hearted, and so darn bent on stamping out injustice that she survives it all. A whopping good story that will have Paretsky's millions of fans screaming for more. (Reviewed Apr. 1, 1994)038529932XEmily Melton

As prickly and principled as ever, Chicago's preeminent female PI, V.I. Warshawski, forcefully unravels several knotted mysteries in Paretsky's ( Guardian Angel ) latest complex, satisfying novel. V.I. encounters a homeless woman and her children in the basement of her derelict downtown office building. When she mentions the family at a board meeting of a shelter for abused women, board member Deirdre Messenger offers to seek help from Home Free, another organization she is involved with. Soon, however, Deirdre's bludgeoned body is found in V.I.'s office. Setting out to find the murderer, the almost-40 detective gradually uncovers a mammoth financial scam that may link the dead woman's husband (an ambitious University of Chicago Law School professor), the ranking U.S. Senator from Illinois, a Chicago bank owner and Home Free's director, a radical activist who was at law school with V.I. in the '60s. Equally compelling--to V.I. and the reader--are the plights of the homeless family and of the Messenger children, teenaged Emily and her two young brothers, who disappear soon after their mother's death. Breaking laws and alienating friends--including her lover Conrad, a Chicago police detective--V.I. faces down rats in high places and low, from the cornfields of the Senator's agribusiness to the tunnels, deep under the Chicago Loop, flooded by a water-main break. Paretsky's V.I. is a rare literary entity, a woman quick to anger and action, yet sympathetic and credible. Literary Guild, Mystery Guild and Doubleday Book Club selections. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

YA‘The world seems to be caving in on V.I. Warshawski‘the building that houses her office is dilapidated; her bills are mounting rapidly; and the one client who is saving her from financial collapse insists that she find his computer-hacking son a community service job to keep him out of jail. Added to this is her concern about a homeless family living in her soon-to-be condemned building. The family takes on greater significance when an acquaintance of Warshawski's is murdered in her office. She strongly suspects the victim's spouse, but on her way to proving his guilt more obstacles arise that jeopardize her investigation. While certainly a fine mystery, this book also addresses the social issues of child abuse and homelessness, illegal aliens, political power, and payoffs. Paretsky has again woven a tale of intrigue that's sure to keep readers engrossed.‘Diane Goheen, Topeka West High School, KS (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Popular sleuth V.I. Warshawsky investigates a homeless advocates' group in the ninth installment of Paretsky's best-selling mystery series. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Chicago PI V.I. Warshawski (Guardian Angel, 1992, etc.) discovers frail, frightened Tamar Hawkings and her three children living in the rat-infested basement of V.I.'s soon-to-be-abandoned office building. Seeking help for the family from the city's shelter organizations, V.I. comes across some odd information about a small group of women in construction trades seeking a contract to build low-cost housing. Something is going on that connects one- time radical Jasper Heccomb; Alec Gantner, a senator's son whose family has megaholdings in an agricultural concern called Gant-Ag; banker Donald Blakely; and law professor Fabian Messenger. An invitation to the Messengers' party brings V.I. into close contact with Fabian's dysfunctional family; and in the party's aftermath, wife Deirdre is found bludgeoned to death in V.I.'s office while teenaged daughter Emily has vanished with two younger brothers in tow. Chaos is furthered by flooded tunnels deep below Chicago's streets, a theatrical backdrop for V.I.'s rescue of the children, with help from valiant neighbor Contreras. The wind-up of the big scam, on Gant-Ag's airfield, is equally melodramatic, ending an overstuffed saga that's as much fun to read as your newspaper on a bad day. Strictly overkill for a heroine gone from hard-edged to hard- bitten and a creative writer on a self-indulgent rampage. (Literary Guild main selection; Mystery Guild selection; author tour)

Popular sleuth V.I. Warshawsky investigates a homeless advocates' group in the ninth installment of Paretsky's best-selling mystery series. Copyright 1994 Cahners Business Information.

As prickly and principled as ever, Chicago's preeminent female PI, V.I. Warshawski, forcefully unravels several knotted mysteries in Paretsky's ( Guardian Angel ) latest complex, satisfying novel. V.I. encounters a homeless woman and her children in the basement of her derelict downtown office building. When she mentions the family at a board meeting of a shelter for abused women, board member Deirdre Messenger offers to seek help from Home Free, another organization she is involved with. Soon, however, Deirdre's bludgeoned body is found in V.I.'s office. Setting out to find the murderer, the almost-40 detective gradually uncovers a mammoth financial scam that may link the dead woman's husband (an ambitious University of Chicago Law School professor), the ranking U.S. Senator from Illinois, a Chicago bank owner and Home Free's director, a radical activist who was at law school with V.I. in the '60s. Equally compelling--to V.I. and the reader--are the plights of the homeless family and of the Messenger children, teenaged Emily and her two young brothers, who disappear soon after their mother's death. Breaking laws and alienating friends--including her lover Conrad, a Chicago police detective--V.I. faces down rats in high places and low, from the cornfields of the Senator's agribusiness to the tunnels, deep under the Chicago Loop, flooded by a water-main break. Paretsky's V.I. is a rare literary entity, a woman quick to anger and action, yet sympathetic and credible. Literary Guild, Mystery Guild and Doubleday Book Club selections. (May) Copyright 1994 Cahners Business Information.

The eighth novel in her series, Paretsky's female sleuth V.I. Warshawski returns to solve a murder involving a round of political figures. (June) Copyright 1995 Cahners Business Information.

The eighth novel in her series, Paretsky's female sleuth V.I. `Vic' Warshawski returns to solve a murder involving a round of political figures. (June) Copyright 1995 Cahners Business Information.

YA?The world seems to be caving in on V.I. Warshawski?the building that houses her office is dilapidated; her bills are mounting rapidly; and the one client who is saving her from financial collapse insists that she find his computer-hacking son a community service job to keep him out of jail. Added to this is her concern about a homeless family living in her soon-to-be condemned building. The family takes on greater significance when an acquaintance of Warshawski's is murdered in her office. She strongly suspects the victim's spouse, but on her way to proving his guilt more obstacles arise that jeopardize her investigation. While certainly a fine mystery, this book also addresses the social issues of child abuse and homelessness, illegal aliens, political power, and payoffs. Paretsky has again woven a tale of intrigue that's sure to keep readers engrossed.?Diane Goheen, Topeka West High School, KS