September 07, 2008

BOOKS: Eight of Swords, David Skibbins (2005)

First volume (of four, so far) in Skibbins' series about Berkeley Tarot reader Warren Ritter.

Warren reads the Tarot mostly for the money, and is something of an agnostic as to whether there's any validity to his readings. But when teenaged Heather Wellington asks for a reading, the cards are so unsettling, both singly and in combination, that even Warren is disturbed. He breaks off the reading and fibs his way to a somewhat less ominous reading.

Much to his horror, Heather is kidnapped later that day, and Warren finds himself one of the chief suspects. Warren can't afford to have the law snooping around, so he starts investigating the crime himself, hoping to solve it before the cops figure out who he really is.

Because Warren Ritter isn't his real name; he is, in fact, a fugitive from justice. In the 60s, he was a member of the Weather Underground, and "Warren Ritter" is only one of a handful of fake identities that he has developed in various cities. Skibbins never spells out precisely what crimes Warren is wanted for (or whether he's actually guilty), but we do get the sense that he was a relatively minor player. It's even possible that he was so minor a figure that no one is actually looking for him, especially since he faked his own death 30 years ago, but Warren's paranoia won't allow him to take that chance.

The mystery is a good one, with an entertaining assortment of suspects and sidekick characters; the standout of the latter is Sally, a disabled computer expert who is the closest thing Warren has to a girlfriend. The storytelling moves along rapidly, and the suspenseful moments work well. Warren himself is a terrific character, and his combination of paranoia and bipolar disorder makes him even more unreliable than most first-person narrators.

I'm sure that some will be completely appalled at the thought of a series hero who's been living underground as a fugitive for 30 years; they should probably avoid this series. As for me, I'm planning to move on to the second volume.

No comments: