This is a lovely hardback edition of the 11th Joe DeMarco thriller by Mike Lawson, originally from the Central Arkansas library. Apparently, Little Rock funded upgrades to the library, presumably either buying or later replacing this book. It amuses me to think of this book travelling all the way to England, and honestly it is in great condition so was perfectly good enough to stay in Little Rock library.
As for the story, Joe is sent to Boston to help a feisty, old lady, Elinore Dobbs, who is being unfairly treated by her landlord to force her to move out. The landlord wants to develop a large part of the area, of which Elinore’s building is one part. Legally, there is not much DeMarco can do, given a lack of support from local law enforcement and councils.
DeMarco doesn’t always have to stay within the law though, and this story gets personal when Joe and later Elinore are attacked. Joe enlists the services of Delray, a henchman he met in a previous book, to frame the developer and his go-to thugs.
To be honest, the plot gets a bit out of hand when they involve a South American former drug smuggler in the frame, though the cameo appearance of a beautiful female assassin, La Leona, is fun.
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