Trouble With Thin Ice, The

Simona Griffo Mystery #4

by Camilla T. Crespi

Simona and her detective boyfriend are spending Christmas in a cozy Connecticut inn to attend an interracial wedding. It’s Simona’s first vacation with Greenhouse and her nervousness isn’t helped by the presence of Greenhouse’s wary teenage son, Willy. Out for some needed cold air, Simona discovers a body under the thin ice of the nearby lake. The dead woman, whose husband had disappeared years earlier, turns out to have had mysterious ties to Kesho, the African American bride-to-be. Greenhouse is in Florida with his ailing mother, leaving Simona in charge of Willy, when Kesho is arrested for the murder. Convinced of her new friend’s innocence and with Willy as her Watson, Simona delves into the town’s secrets and lies to uncover the truth. Another murder gives Simona a much-needed clue, but her zeal for the truth puts Willy and her in danger. Thanks to Simona’s gutsiness and Willy’s fast thinking, the murderer gets his due, Kesho walks down the aisle and Greenhouse asks a question. A recipe for Comfort Pasta is included. "Simona exercises her adorable ways with a vengeance…but it is her keen intelligence, not her bubbly personality, that wins.”—Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review “Rich in atmosphere and buoyed by wry wit, Crespi’s briskly paced narrative calls for an encore.”— Publishers Weekly starred review “Crespi turns out a nicely complicated story that includes both unexpected twists and credible interpersonal tensions... Simona’s voice is personable. She deals deftly with racism and, more generally, with stereotyping, whether it is used to pigeonhole blacks, Italians, or New Yorkers.”— Wilson Library Journal “ The Trouble With Thin Ice is the best Simona Griffo yet, a fast-paced puzzle with the trademark recipe included."—M.E. Burness, Reading For Pleasure

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

Camilla T. Crespi also writes novels under the name Camilla Trinchieri.

Series:
* Simona Griffo Mystery

Reviews

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Divorced Italian expatriate, and our narrator, Simona is spending Christmas at a small b&b in Connecticut with her policeman-lover Stan Greenhouse and his son Willy, who distrusts and dislikes her. Stan's friend Kesha is planning to get married, and she and her fiancé want to buy the Frank Lloyd Wright house now owned by a member of the Dobson family, who consider that they should rule the town. History and racism are both factors, as is the mysterious disappearance years ago of the husband of the current owner of the house. The local police chief has a long-standing grudge against Kesha, and when Stan has to fly to Florida to help his ailing mother, Willy and Simona find common ground in trying to clear Kesha. I really loved this series, and still miss it.