til Death

This is another early installment in the 87th Precinct series and the second in a row in which the action all occurs over the course of a single day.

Steve Carella’s little sister, Angela, is getting married in a big outdoor wedding in the backyard of the Carella family home. Steve’s day begins early with a call from the bridegroom, Tommy Giordano. Tommy is alarmed about something and wants Steve to come over to his house. Carella arrives to find that someone has left a present “For the Groom” on Tommy’s front porch. In the box is a Black Widow spider.
Is it a lame wedding day joke, or is someone seriously threatening Tommy’s life?

Steve decides to take no chances and calls in a few of the other off-duty detectives to attend the wedding and keep a sharp eye out. They’d better, because it soon becomes clear that the danger is real and it seems to be coming from every direction. And as the afternoon wears on, there’s the very real chance that Tommy and Angela’s marriage might not even last long enough for the honeymoon to begin. To add to the complications, Steve’s wife, Teddy, is very, very pregnant, and Carella has only a week or so to go before he’s going to be a father.

This is a short, entertaining read, and all of the characters are in high form. Fans of the series will certainly enjoy it.

Similar to the previous book, this one follows the events of just one day.
Steve Carrela’s sister is getting married and the groom receives a threatening note. He pulls in a couple of off duty members of the 87th squad room to attend the wedding and keep an eye on things.

This is also a very linear story, no secondary cases being investigated at the same time although this one has a couple of minor twists

Not bad and as with most of the books in this series so far it would make a good 1 hour TV episode.

I think only Ed McBain could take only one day and write a whole book that would hold my attention. Steve Carella’s sister is getting married and maybe, just maybe someone is trying to kill the groom. Who and why? It could be one of several people but Steve and his buddies from the 87th are running out of time to find the killer. Bert Kling and Cotton Hawes are off duty but agree to come to the wedding to help. Myer Myer and the ones on duty are working on another angle. Also, Teddy, Steve’s wife is expecting a baby any time. Does she have it in this book or maybe the next one, have to read to find out. You will not want to put this one down when you start it. A quick easy to read good book.

Excellent storytelling and now,Carella is a dad. Cotton gets beat u p by a girl.

Very interesting developments in this tale.

McBain managed to capture the changing public scene over more than a generation. His stories are akin to the well-made plays of the late 19th century. Or like the Father Brown mystery series. Formulaic? Sure – the same way opera is. But within the form he mastered so well, McBain was one of a kind.

I wish the Kindle versions didn’t remain so expensive. When I have time I’m going to order some worn and tatty paperbacks just for the sheer enjoyment of watching a master perform.

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