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Johnny Colbert is a tattooed bartender with a gambling addiction, a foul mouth, and a temper that can get her into trouble. In this case, big trouble. Shortly after she threatens a judge in Debt Court, the judge's car is blown up with the judge inside it. Guess who has no alibi and a lot of experience with explosives. You got it. Attorney Melinda Lowell is handling the case pro bono, and it looks like Johnny is going to prison. Melinda asks her father for help. This might seem odd, but David Lowell has a unique talent. He is a skilled astrologer. Using his talents, as well as those of his office staff, Melinda thinks perhaps they can get Johnny off. When somebody leaves a threatening note on David's car, the group realizes that they are on to something. They aren't sure what, but somebody is obviously upset. Johnny's apartment is trashed. What prompted that? What does Johnny have that someone is looking for? Who had it in for the judge, a woman seemingly loved by all? David does his charts, analyzes what they indicate, and pursues the leads that present themselves once he's done his work. His computer whiz Mort gets him information that backs up the charts, or proves one person in particular to be a liar. In the end, David and his team do clear Johnny. Lewis goes into great detail about the various charts, and most of it is too technical for the average non-astrologer. The extrapolations he makes sound reasonable. The conclusions he draws, again, are based on knowledge most readers don't have. It works. The motivations make sense, the characters make sense, the ultimate denouement makes sense. The various twists and turns of the story are engaging, keeping one reading in spite of the lack of background knowledge. Lewis has taken the sub-genre of "occupational" mystery in a new direction, and done it successfully. Surely there is plenty of room for a series, given the original premises. § P.J. Coldren lives in northern lower Michigan where she reads and reviews widely across the mystery genre when she isn't working in her local hospital pharmacy.
Reviewed by P.J. Coldren, September 2011
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