Night Secrets

Frank Clemons #3

by Thomas H. Cook

As two separate cases begin to merge, private detective Frank Clemons finds the lives of two very different women--Puri Dai, an accused killer and gypsy queen, and an elegant society matron with a secret past--also intertwining

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Mystery Thriller, Suspense

301 pages, Hardcover

First published June 12, 1990

About the author

There is more than one author with this name on Goodreads.

Thomas H. Cook has been praised by critics for his attention to psychology and the lyrical nature of his prose. He is the author of more than 30 critically-acclaimed fiction books, including works of true crime. Cook published his first novel, Blood Innocents, in 1980. Cook published steadily through the 1980s, penning such works as the Frank Clemons trilogy, a series of mysteries starring a jaded cop.

He found breakout success with The Chatham School Affair (1996), which won an Edgar Award for best novel. Besides mysteries, Cook has written two true-crime books including the Edgar-nominated Blood Echoes (1993). He lives and works in New York City.

Awards
Edgar Allan Poe – Best Novel – The Chatham School Affair
Barry Award – Best Novel – Red Leaves
Martin Beck Award of the Swedish Academy of Detection – The Chatham School Affair
Martin Beck Award of the Swedish Academy of Detection – Red Leaves
Herodotus Prize – Fatherhood

Reviews

[Babette · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the third and last book in a short (and only) series Cook wrote. The main character is a loner (a cop, then a PI) and his cases involve him with unusual people (often also outside of society). However, the characters and plots are interesting. I thought there might be a follow-on to this book, but apparently not. Apart from this series, I have only read one other novel by Cook. It, too, had characters in some way set apart from 'normal' society. I like the writing and the less traditional aspects of the characters.

[Bettye McKee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good mystery

Frank Clemons, private investigator in New York City, is approached by a man who wants Frank to follow his wife, not to dig up dirt but to discover what is troubling her, why she has become distant and cold.

Then a Gypsy fortune-teller is murdered and a woman is arrested, but Frank doesn't believe she is the killer. He decides to look into the matter on his own.

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[Joe Nicholl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well...I felt the Frank Clemons trilogy went out on a low note...it followed two unrelated cases, neither one of them very interesting...although, the very, very end had a nice little twist which led me to thinking was Frank gonna head back south to his ex-wife -??? -Either way I think author Cook, who is a Great writer, ran outa gas with Frank Clemons and was ready to move on to new material...

[Didi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

[Kathleen Hagen]

This is not one of Cook’s best, and Guidall reads it too slowly. Frank Clemens is a private eye down on his luck. He investigates cases by day to make money, but he can’t sleep at night so he roams the streets and investigates cases for which he does not get paid. Frank Clemons begins, at night, investigating a gypsy woman who has become his obsession. With the guidance of his sometime partner Farouk, Frank delves into the darkly ritualistic world of the gypsy Puri Dai. Why was one of her roommates, a gypsy fortune teller, killed? Why was Puri Dai willing to take the blame when she hadn’t killed the old woman? Who was the mysterious little girl who seemed to live with Puri Dai? And, with regard to the day case, why was it that his client’s wife seemed to be trying to kill him, and what was her past before marrying his client? Good procedural as usual trying to figure out these cases, but it moves too slowly, with, in my mind, if you can believe it, too much dialogue.

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the only Thomas Cook that I've found that I don't like. I don't know whether it was the character or the plot, but I do know that I thought the writing was shoddy and there was no twist that made the story worth reading. Since this is the third of a series on this particular detective, I think I'll skip the rest. If you're a rabid Cook fan, you may like this. Otherwise, don't waste your time.

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely not Cook's best. Way too rambling, and I have never been able to get on board with Farouk - maybe because the way he turned up out of nowhere in book 2 seemed like a setup to have him be somehow involved with the bad guys. It was probably a good idea to wind up the series here.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book he truely is a wonderdul writer...

[Betty · Rating 5 out of 5]

soooo sad that this book is the last in Cook's trilogy!

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Last book of the Frank Clemmons trilogy.

Compelling enough to keep on reading the series, but has none of the magic and poetry of other Thomas H. Cook books (Chatham School Affair for example).y

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cassettes in 1999.

[Joni · Rating 3 out of 5]

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