missing justice / negativeland

[June 23rd, 2004]

^missing justice

Burke reads at Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 228-4651. 7:30 pm Monday, June 28.

In her second go-round as a creator of Portland-based crime thrillers, former Multnomah County Deputy District Attorney Alafair Burke has produced a thoroughly successful piece of summer fiction. Missing Justice is sufficiently engaging that it may give our other lawyer-cum-novelist, Phil Margolin, a run for his money.

By now Burke must be sick of literary comparisons with her father, James Lee Burke, especially after the plodding disappointment of her first effort, Judgment Calls, published last summer. With Missing Justice, she has added to the challenge: The key to the plot lies in the metro area's urban growth boundary--potentially arid matter for a thriller.

The plot is neatly scripted, however--a city judge is murdered for no apparent reason until Burke's protagonist, Samantha Kincaid (also a Multnomah County Deputy DA), unravels a series of secrets that drive the book to its conclusion. Happily, Kincaid seems to have developed depth and personality in the brief interval since her introduction last year. Even Portland fares better.

The first test of novels involving the justice system and its maze of legal procedure is whether they succeed at showing, rather than telling, what's at stake. Here again, Burke's second effort puts to rest the narrative weaknesses that marred her first. Perhaps the best sign that Burke has hit her stride is that she's able to deliver an occasional laugh-out-loud punchline. Witness page 181, when Kincaid explains the failure of her marriage to a colleague: "We seemed to have a disagreement over the use of his penis."

If Alafair Burke continues her growth as a writer, and continues using Portland as the setting for her murder mysteries, we're in for a healthy dose of escapist therapy in the future. Richard H. Meeker

^negativeland

Nufer reads at Powell's Books on Hawthorne, 3723 SE Hawthorne Blvd., 238-1668. 7:30 pm Monday, June 28.

Doug Nufer's novel is a dissatisfying journey into the life of a washed-up athlete who discovers he has lived his life badly within a world full of lies. Ex-Olympian Ken Honochick won two gold medals for the backstroke in the 1972 Olympics in Munich, only to go on to lead a dismal life as an Olympic commercial shill promoting a line of sports gear and remaining in an unhappy marriage to promote his "all-American" image.

It's difficult to relate to such a bland character as Honochick, who has so many regrets. In addition, it's hard to have much sympathy for a character that uses his fame so cheaply to cash in on ignorant Americans. The one saving grace of this book is Honochick's sassy, quick-witted girlfriend, Miriam, who accompanies him on a cross-country venture to recapture his one moment in glory. The two are dragged through the gambling dens and characterless resorts that scab the landscape.

Although Miriam is a spark in the darkness her mere existence in the story is rather cliché. She is the complete polar opposite of Honochick, always speaking her mind, swearing like a sailor and making grand entrances in outrageous outfits. Their "opposites attract" clash of character is pretty stale. So is the story, which has been done a million times: The American dream isn't all it's cracked up to be. Although his novel is disappointing, Nufer does vividly depict the deadening, bland places that the characters must visit. Negativeland is a good cautionary tale for anyone seriously considering giving up his or her freedom for commercial success as an athlete. Dana Halverson