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THE VERGE PRACTICE by Barry Maitland Arcade Publishing, July 2004 320 pages $25.00 ISBN: 1559707135 Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

Charles Verge is missing. The famed architect returned from a trip to New York, especially to attend an important meeting with representatives of the Chinese government who wanted to build a new city, but he never made the meeting. His beautiful young second wife, also an architect, is found dead in their bed in the apartment above the offices.

Four months later, he is still missing, and the investigation is turned over to Detective Chief Inspector David Brock, Detective Inspector Bren Gurney and Detective Sergeant Kathy Kolla.

Did Verge kill his wife and then arrange for his own disappearance? Were both killed by the same person? Upon investigation, some shady doings are found within the firm. The finances are on shaky ground. After all, Verge was a tyrant who imposed his will on his associates and clients. His minimalist, colorless style, after all, has a shelf life of about two minutes, and he had been on top for many years.

The search for the truth leads Kolla to the north of England and to Barcelona, before heading toward a totally unexpected conclusion.

This is the sixth book in the series, and Maitland is finally giving a bit more time to the private lives of Brock and Kolla. Brock's relationship with Suzanne and her grandchildren seem to be improving, while Kolla's with Leon Desai, the handsome lab technician, seems to be deteriorating. There is also detail about the workings of an architectural practice.

If you haven't already savored the delights of this series, this reviewer's favorites are the first in the series THE MARX SISTERS, which I read with a London A to Z next to me, trying to find the (non-existent) streets used as the venue for the book, and the fourth, SILVERMEADOW, about a giant shopping center. Maitland wrote THE textbook on shopping center design in his previous life as an architect. 

Reviewed by Barbara Franchi, February 2005

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