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First introduced in Suspicion of Innocence, Gail Connor and Anthony Quintana are Florida attorneys who have faced each other in court and have shared a rocky love affair. They are now back on track and they are making plans for their wedding. In this story, Anthony is staying at a client's Key West resort free of charge while helping the owner with some legal matters. Quintana decides to take advantage and make it a working vacation by bringing Gail over for a romantic weekend. Love is in the air until a murder puts a stop to that and the lawyers decide to join forces in defending the accused and discovering the truth. In the seventh installment of the Suspicion of series, Connor and Quintana are trying to protect the stepson of Buttonwood Inn's owner Martin Greenwald. Billy Fadden has confessed to the murder of Sandra McCoy, an employee at the resort. Shortly thereafter, Billy tries to commit suicide and fails. Anthony had previously defended Billy as a juvenile during an arson case, but now, things are going over his head. Billy has no interest in defending himself and there are other events going on in the island including a possible hurricane. By the time the book is over, nothing will ever remain the same. Barbara Parker brings in a colorful cast of characters in this book in order to demonstrate the madness in some of the situations. Martin's sister is very ambitious and for several years she has tried to buy Joan Sinclair's land in order to create a harbor for the hotel. Ms. Sinclair is a former B-movie actress best known for her work as a vampire in a series of movies. She is very private, extremely reclusive, and a bit nuts. She is Billy's alibi for the night of the murder; however, getting information out of her is like pulling teeth. Finally, there is an insecure gardener who works for Ms. Sinclair and the inn. He might appear to be dumb, but apparently he knows more than he is letting on. Each one of these characters adds something to the mix in the defense case for Billy Fadden. By the end of the trial, nothing will be the same. There is a big surprise near the end of the book that would make Agatha Christie and Alfred Hitchcock proud. It will hit readers like a sledgehammer. Suspicion of Madness is quite an interesting piece of work and it is not essential to read Parker's previous novels to understand and enjoy. A good starting point and an entertaining work of fiction.
Reviewed by Angel L. Soto, December 2002
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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