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Cassie Burdette -- one of the most engaging characters in recent mysteries -- nurtures the dream of making it in professional golf, fending off the importunities of her mother to come home and get a "real" job in real estate. A stroke of luck -- stomach flu has laid low seven of the top women golfers among the money winners -- leads to Cassie's summons to be a pro in a pro-am tournament in Atlantic City. She is teamed with four executives from Meditron, a pharmaceutical firm; two are MD's; one a Ph.D., and Erica LeBoutellier, who calls herself a clinical scientists, and says, "Those guys tell other people how to collect the data, then I tell them what it means." Conversation turns to a revolutionary drug Meditron is developing, a treatment for Alzheimer's. Erica voices skepticism about the rush to market the Alzheimer's drug; she wants further tests to determine the effects of the drug on the liver, even if that means delaying the sales by two or three years. The three men dismiss her reservations, primarily because they are eager to cash in as soon as possible. When Erica doesn't turn up for play on the second day, Cassie becomes concerned and persuades the hotel manager to open Erica's room, where she finds her dead, apparently of an overdose. While the police and Erica's colleagues accept the verdict of suicide, Cassie is sure that the death was not self inflicted, because Erica was so devoted to her young daughter and had great plans with her. Though Cassie's motive for continuing the investigation -- against the very tedious standoffs with the police detective in charge of the case -- is fairly flimsy, her persistence pays off, and she uncovers the crime. As she probes for the truth, she deals with Erica's almost ex-husband, who tells her of Erica's dark side; Cassie learns that Erica's marriage broke up because of her gambling and drug use. Most interesting among the secondary characters is Laura, Cassie's friend and caddy, who tries to keep her friend grounded and focused on golf, rather than on playing "Agatha Christie." The tension among the Meditron executives is clearly delineated, especially the man in charge of the Alzheimer's project, who knows that his job is on the line, and the executive suffering from unrequited love for Erica.
Reviewed by Mary Elizabeth Devine, July 2003
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