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My Darling Detective: A Literary Noir Where Woman Detective Unravels Murder and Dark Family Truth
“[An] ingeniously plotted novel . . . Norman knows how to weave an enticing and satisfying mystery, one tantalizing thread at a time.” — New York Times Book Review
A witty, engrossing homage to noir, from National Book Award finalist Howard Norman
Jacob Rigolet, soon-to-be former assistant to a wealthy art collector, looks up from his seat at an auction—his mother, former head librarian at the Halifax Free Library, is walking almost casually up the aisle. Before a stunned audience, she flings an open jar of ink at master photographer Robert Capa’s Death on a Leipzig Balcony. Jacob’s police detective fiancée is assigned to the ensuing interrogation.
My Darling Detective delivers a fond nod to classic noir, as Jacob’s understanding of the man he has always assumed to be his father unravels against the darker truth of Robert Emil, a police officer suspected of murdering two Jewish residents during an upswing of anti-Semitism in 1945. The denouement, involving a dire shootout and an emergency delivery—it’s the second Rigolet to be born in the Halifax library in a three decades—is Howard Norman at his uncannily moving best.
“Norman works with an offhand ease and grace . . . Whimsy is balanced by moments of powerfully evoked realism.” — Washington Post
“An unconventional, lively literary mystery.” — Kirkus Reviews
A witty, engrossing homage to noir, from National Book Award finalist Howard Norman
Jacob Rigolet, soon-to-be former assistant to a wealthy art collector, looks up from his seat at an auction—his mother, former head librarian at the Halifax Free Library, is walking almost casually up the aisle. Before a stunned audience, she flings an open jar of ink at master photographer Robert Capa’s Death on a Leipzig Balcony. Jacob’s police detective fiancée is assigned to the ensuing interrogation.
My Darling Detective delivers a fond nod to classic noir, as Jacob’s understanding of the man he has always assumed to be his father unravels against the darker truth of Robert Emil, a police officer suspected of murdering two Jewish residents during an upswing of anti-Semitism in 1945. The denouement, involving a dire shootout and an emergency delivery—it’s the second Rigolet to be born in the Halifax library in a three decades—is Howard Norman at his uncannily moving best.
“Norman works with an offhand ease and grace . . . Whimsy is balanced by moments of powerfully evoked realism.” — Washington Post
“An unconventional, lively literary mystery.” — Kirkus Reviews
256 pages, Paperback
First published March 28, 2017
79 people are currently reading
1110 people want to read
About the author
Howard Norman
59 books282 followersHoward A. Norman (born 1949), is an American award-winning writer and educator. Most of his short stories and novels are set in Canada's Maritime Provinces. He has written several translations of Algonquin, Cree, Eskimo, and Inuit folklore. His books have been translated into 12 languages.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 185 reviews
April 11, 2017
3.5 Halifax, 1970's and Jacob is working for a wealthy woman, placing bids at auctions for photographs or photographic collections. His mother, a former library director, is a resident of a local mental hospital for defacing a photograph at a, auction, a photograph showing three men and taken by Capa. The police team investigating the incident includes Jacob's fiancée Martha.
So the story begins with a misstep made by Jacob, a change in career path follows and he will soon learn much more about his mother and the man he was told was his father, revelations that will put him and his little family in danger.
This is not an edge of your seat thriller, the pacing and plot is even toned throughout. I love that this author writes in straightforward prose, not at all dramatically. Has a noir and old fashioned feel, he creates this atmosphere by the dialogue he uses and it is much aided by the police radio drama that is a staple of Martha and Jacobs life together. This provides for a quick moving and interesting foray into the past, an atmospheric read, with some interesting characters and revelations.
ARC by Netgalley.
So the story begins with a misstep made by Jacob, a change in career path follows and he will soon learn much more about his mother and the man he was told was his father, revelations that will put him and his little family in danger.
This is not an edge of your seat thriller, the pacing and plot is even toned throughout. I love that this author writes in straightforward prose, not at all dramatically. Has a noir and old fashioned feel, he creates this atmosphere by the dialogue he uses and it is much aided by the police radio drama that is a staple of Martha and Jacobs life together. This provides for a quick moving and interesting foray into the past, an atmospheric read, with some interesting characters and revelations.
ARC by Netgalley.
July 19, 2019
I've had a sinus infection for almost two weeks, so I wanted an entertaining book to make me forget about the clog. Howard Norman's My Darling Detective, recommended by GR friends Paul Secor and Mary Lins, was listed as shelved in the mystery section of my local NY Public Library branch, so I hightailed it over there for distraction medicine.
It was not in the mystery section; it was hiding in the general fiction. The book cover labels it "A Novel" (look closely and read vertically on the extended tail of the "I" in "Detective"), and I believe whoever misshelved it was attempting to remedy a grievous library categorization error.
How to describe this book? It is FUN! So much fun that I temporarily forgot about the fact that I couldn't breathe. It is fiction that sounds like a noir novel—there's a cop, a librarian, a romance, a crime (that cannot really be called a mystery so much as a conundrum), an addiction to listening to a time-traveling cop radio serial, and some really great writing. An absolutely lovely, loving, funny, endearing novel.
It was not in the mystery section; it was hiding in the general fiction. The book cover labels it "A Novel" (look closely and read vertically on the extended tail of the "I" in "Detective"), and I believe whoever misshelved it was attempting to remedy a grievous library categorization error.
How to describe this book? It is FUN! So much fun that I temporarily forgot about the fact that I couldn't breathe. It is fiction that sounds like a noir novel—there's a cop, a librarian, a romance, a crime (that cannot really be called a mystery so much as a conundrum), an addiction to listening to a time-traveling cop radio serial, and some really great writing. An absolutely lovely, loving, funny, endearing novel.
May 13, 2025
Coincidence - The narrator of this novel mentions at one point that he had worked at John W. Doull, Bookseller. When my wife and I were on vacation some time ago, we were in Halifax, Nova Scotia for a day and spent an afternoon looking in bookstores. I'm sure that I found and bought an inscribed copy of one of W.P. Kinsella's Silas Ermineskin story collections at the Doull bookstore. I can't find the store bookmark that I know I have somewhere, but I'm sure it was the same store.
Semi-coincidence - I recently read Yannick Haenel's Hold Fast Your Crown, in which Michael Cimino's Heaven's Gate plays a large role. At one point in My Darling Detective, two couples are at a theatre watching this film.
OK - Enough about coincidences. And any detective worth their salt will tell you that there are no coincidences.
My Darling Detective: On the first page, a woman walks into an auction and throws an open bottle of black ink at a Robert Capa photograph.
One of the characters is an anti Semitic former cop who's suspected of two murders.
Another character (my favorite) is a female police detective who reads Hardy, Keats, and Robertson Davies.
There is a pornographic scene (which relates to a situation in the novel) etched on the back of the oak card catalog in the Halifax library. (The book takes place in the late 1970s when card catalogs still existed.)
The narrator and his fiancée listen to a weekly radio serial on her shortwave radio. The show, replete with a private detective, his girlfriend moll, and their gangster friends, somewhat parallels the main characters' relationship.
If any of these descriptions appeals to you, you may want to give My Darling Detective a try.
Recommended to:
Readers who enjoy novels set in Canada.
Readers who enjoy novels about libraries.
Adventurous librarians.
Readers who like an honest love story.
Semi-coincidence - I recently read Yannick Haenel's Hold Fast Your Crown, in which Michael Cimino's Heaven's Gate plays a large role. At one point in My Darling Detective, two couples are at a theatre watching this film.
OK - Enough about coincidences. And any detective worth their salt will tell you that there are no coincidences.
My Darling Detective: On the first page, a woman walks into an auction and throws an open bottle of black ink at a Robert Capa photograph.
One of the characters is an anti Semitic former cop who's suspected of two murders.
Another character (my favorite) is a female police detective who reads Hardy, Keats, and Robertson Davies.
There is a pornographic scene (which relates to a situation in the novel) etched on the back of the oak card catalog in the Halifax library. (The book takes place in the late 1970s when card catalogs still existed.)
The narrator and his fiancée listen to a weekly radio serial on her shortwave radio. The show, replete with a private detective, his girlfriend moll, and their gangster friends, somewhat parallels the main characters' relationship.
If any of these descriptions appeals to you, you may want to give My Darling Detective a try.
Recommended to:
Readers who enjoy novels set in Canada.
Readers who enjoy novels about libraries.
Adventurous librarians.
Readers who like an honest love story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 24, 2017
This is my first Howard Norman, so I don’t have his oeuvre to compare this to. But if he consistently writes this well, I’ll be a frequent flyer. MY DARLING DETECTIVE is a genre-crossing novel that combines detective, mystery, literature, domestic dramady, and historical fiction into one delightful, warm, and poignant narrative. There are several moving parts that subtly thrive together in a hive buzzing with soul. That is what makes this book such a superb read—the magic and the charm, and some memorable characters.
Taking place primarily in the 1970s, the mystery at the heart of this novel dates back to 1945, when Nora Rigolet’s husband, Bernie, an American soldier in WW II, died fighting in Germany. At the opening of this novel, her son, Jake, is working for a wealthy art collector, Esther Hamelin--mostly photographs, bidding for her at auctions. At his hometown of Halifax, during an auction of photograph “Death on a Leipzig Balcony,” Nora, who is supposed to be in a locked facility for the mentally ill, has obviously escaped, because Jake is astonished to see her next to the auctioneer, after she has thrown a bottle of black ink onto the framed photo, leading to her arrest.
Jake’s fiancée, Martha, is the interrogating detective in this case, or as the genial Nora calls her, “Interlocutrix.” This is the beginning of a deep friendship between Nora and Martha, and a penetrating investigation into a cold case, now thawing under Martha’s hands. “I’m experiencing a fall from grace,” says Nora. “I hope I’m not embarrassing my son. But I’m experiencing a fall from grace.”
This fall from grace is not limited just to Nora, a former head of the Halifax Free Library. Jake also experiences a dip, but it leads to returning to college, to study library science like his mother did. Throughout the novel, it is the relationship between Martha and Jake that stand out so endearingly. Their irreverent wit and natural devotion for each other is infectious, evident on every page. Norman executes small details with alacrity, like the intimate pleasure Jake and Martha take in their favorite radio program, a noir detective show replete with gangsters, molls, and silk stockings. The radio show often parallels the magic between the couple. “It was almost as if Detective Levy Detects intensified Martha’s comprehension of the powers of seduction.”
But back to the case at hand…and that is how it goes, the narrative alternating with the mix of characters; interrogations; old letters from Bernie to Nora; and developing events. The plot itself isn’t astounding, yet I was glued to the pages. Norman’s construction, tempo, characters, relationships, and writing are key to the sum of its parts cohering into a superb whole. The text just tingles, and the members of the cast were eloquently portrayed, often with few but significant words.
This could have been a soap opera in lesser hands, or an opportunity for preachy politics. However, despite the inclusion of serious topics such as anti-Semitism, betrayal, guilt, and loss, the narrative was feisty, concise, and comic-noir-ish--not dark or gloomy. It shimmers and gleams. It’s the kind of novel I could read again, for the mood and rapport, and Martha. She’s a goddess, a literary hero. I miss her, I miss these pages. Martha, my dear, you will always be my inspiration…
Taking place primarily in the 1970s, the mystery at the heart of this novel dates back to 1945, when Nora Rigolet’s husband, Bernie, an American soldier in WW II, died fighting in Germany. At the opening of this novel, her son, Jake, is working for a wealthy art collector, Esther Hamelin--mostly photographs, bidding for her at auctions. At his hometown of Halifax, during an auction of photograph “Death on a Leipzig Balcony,” Nora, who is supposed to be in a locked facility for the mentally ill, has obviously escaped, because Jake is astonished to see her next to the auctioneer, after she has thrown a bottle of black ink onto the framed photo, leading to her arrest.
Jake’s fiancée, Martha, is the interrogating detective in this case, or as the genial Nora calls her, “Interlocutrix.” This is the beginning of a deep friendship between Nora and Martha, and a penetrating investigation into a cold case, now thawing under Martha’s hands. “I’m experiencing a fall from grace,” says Nora. “I hope I’m not embarrassing my son. But I’m experiencing a fall from grace.”
This fall from grace is not limited just to Nora, a former head of the Halifax Free Library. Jake also experiences a dip, but it leads to returning to college, to study library science like his mother did. Throughout the novel, it is the relationship between Martha and Jake that stand out so endearingly. Their irreverent wit and natural devotion for each other is infectious, evident on every page. Norman executes small details with alacrity, like the intimate pleasure Jake and Martha take in their favorite radio program, a noir detective show replete with gangsters, molls, and silk stockings. The radio show often parallels the magic between the couple. “It was almost as if Detective Levy Detects intensified Martha’s comprehension of the powers of seduction.”
But back to the case at hand…and that is how it goes, the narrative alternating with the mix of characters; interrogations; old letters from Bernie to Nora; and developing events. The plot itself isn’t astounding, yet I was glued to the pages. Norman’s construction, tempo, characters, relationships, and writing are key to the sum of its parts cohering into a superb whole. The text just tingles, and the members of the cast were eloquently portrayed, often with few but significant words.
This could have been a soap opera in lesser hands, or an opportunity for preachy politics. However, despite the inclusion of serious topics such as anti-Semitism, betrayal, guilt, and loss, the narrative was feisty, concise, and comic-noir-ish--not dark or gloomy. It shimmers and gleams. It’s the kind of novel I could read again, for the mood and rapport, and Martha. She’s a goddess, a literary hero. I miss her, I miss these pages. Martha, my dear, you will always be my inspiration…
September 7, 2022
The NYT review called it a light fiction, in Graham Greene's sense, and it's the best kind: where the author isn't too worried about plot or character, but mostly just wants to share a personality and show you all the neat stuff he loves. Kind of like late period Kim Stanley Robinson, in that sense. Lucky for me, my interests align with Norman's: Nova Scotia, old time radio and photography, hardboiled detective fiction, libraries, Hemingway and Robert Capa. Definitely looking forward to checking out more of Norman's novels, particularly the ones set in Nova Scotia.
April 20, 2017
Howard Norman’s My Darling Detective gets a high rating in the NYT’s Book Review, and I am puzzled. The tale isn’t particularly good. The writing is only fair. It’s called Canadian noir. OK. He does get the historical things right about Robert Capa and Hemingway and WWII. You end up with a gigantic who cares shrug at the end. The thrill is not gone, for it was never in the work. Where was the plot? Where was the characterization? Not even beach worthy.
February 28, 2017
(3.5) When Jacob Rigolet’s mother Nora, formerly the head of Halifax Free Library, throws ink on a photograph during an art auction in 1977, it sparks an unusual quest into his past. Jacob’s fiancee Martha Crauchet, the detective of the title, learns two startling facts from Nora’s police file: Jacob was born in Halifax Library; and Bernard Rigolet had been serving overseas for more than a year before his birth in 1945, so can’t be his father. Nora’s obsession with World War II, especially her husband’s death at Leipzig, led to a breakdown she coyly calls her “fall from grace” three years ago; she’s been confined to a rest home ever since. As Jacob transitions from being an art buyer to going to library school, Martha gets ever more deeply involved in a cold case that involves Jacob’s real father. The film noir atmosphere is enhanced by a hardboiled detective radio program he and Martha are hooked on: set in the year of Jacob’s birth, Detective Levy Detects keeps overlapping with real life.
This offbeat mystery reminded me somewhat of The World According to Garp. I could see it working as a low-budget indie movie or TV special. I loved how climactic things kept happening at the library, and enjoyed the glimpses of bad borrower behavior: selling the library’s art books to a secondhand bookstore and a 105-year overdue loan found in someone’s attic. I have a suspicion this novel won’t linger long in my mind, but it was a fun weekend read. (Historical note: one character’s mother was killed in the Halifax Explosion.)
This offbeat mystery reminded me somewhat of The World According to Garp. I could see it working as a low-budget indie movie or TV special. I loved how climactic things kept happening at the library, and enjoyed the glimpses of bad borrower behavior: selling the library’s art books to a secondhand bookstore and a 105-year overdue loan found in someone’s attic. I have a suspicion this novel won’t linger long in my mind, but it was a fun weekend read. (Historical note: one character’s mother was killed in the Halifax Explosion.)
April 7, 2018
Delightful and amusing, sort of an homage to the old gumshoe detectives and detective noir cinema/radio, with the standard Howard Norman tropes of Halifax, librarians, the art world, and sexy smart women. Bronson Pinchot seems to have a blast reading this - the audio production is great fun to listen to.
May 10, 2017
What a delight! Howard Norman's, "My Darling Detective", is a thoroughly entertaining bit of modern detective noir. Set in Halifax, Nova Scotia, in the late 1970s, Jake Rigolet's former librarian mother, Nora, has just defaced a 1945 photograph as it's being put up for auction. Jake's fiance, Martha Crauchet, happens to be a detective, who finds herself not only interrogating Nora, but also unearthing some secrets about Jake and Nora that lead her, and her two detective colleagues, to a cold murder case.
In the novel, Jake and Martha are addicted to, and enthralled by, a noir detective radio series in the 1930s-style of such shows. Norman gives us a perfect description of the noir genre, which must contain: "sleazeballs and crooked cops and slinky dames and righteously cynical gumshoes and innocent just-got-to-town types all moving in and out of the shadows." I'll add witty and pithy dialogue and a fast-paced plot; all of which Norman supplies in "My Darling Detective".
I had a tremendous amount of FUN reading this novel. Jake is our first-person narrator and his narrative voice is unique and amusing, and the dialogue among the characters often had me laughing out loud. It's the perfect "palate cleanser" novel to read between heavier stuff.
In the novel, Jake and Martha are addicted to, and enthralled by, a noir detective radio series in the 1930s-style of such shows. Norman gives us a perfect description of the noir genre, which must contain: "sleazeballs and crooked cops and slinky dames and righteously cynical gumshoes and innocent just-got-to-town types all moving in and out of the shadows." I'll add witty and pithy dialogue and a fast-paced plot; all of which Norman supplies in "My Darling Detective".
I had a tremendous amount of FUN reading this novel. Jake is our first-person narrator and his narrative voice is unique and amusing, and the dialogue among the characters often had me laughing out loud. It's the perfect "palate cleanser" novel to read between heavier stuff.
April 1, 2017
A somewhat whimsical first person narrative taking place from 1977 till 1979 with detours in 1944-45, My Darling Detective is clearly a Howard Norman novel and it will definitely appeal to his fans, though for readers not familiar with his work, I would also highly recommend The Haunting of L (that's the novel that introduced and made me a huge fan of his work) and The Bird Artist (his most famous book).
Following Jacob Rigolet who at the start of the book is: (almost) 32, employed as a factotum by an old rich lady of Halifax, though his main job is to go at auctions around the world to bid for various works of art that take Mrs Hamelin's fancy, engaged with Halifax PD detective Martha Crauchet, while his mother Nora, formerly director of the city's public library and now in a "rest hospital" after suffering a breakdown a few years back, comes at one such auction held in the main hotel of Halifax and throws a pot of ink at a famed war (1945, Leipzig) photograph there for auction (not the item Jacob was supposed to bid on, but still enough to cancel the auction and highly annoy his employer of course)
Martha gets the case (interrogate Nora and figure out why etc) and in the process lots of things are unearthed, among others the fact that Jacob was actually born in the Halifax library in April 1945, that it was impossible for his official father to actually be his father (the husband of Nora who was from the US shipped to the UK as a soldier in 1943 and died in Leipzig 2 days after Jacob was born and they never met after he left for war - these two facts form the title of chapter 3 so I wouldn't consider them a major spoiler once you open the book), while a cold case involving two unsolved murders from April 1945 in Halifax, becomes hot again...
And so it goes, alternating from whimsical to more serious and the book is a pleasure to read throughout, though the last few chapters become a little predictable as the book wants to be a noir pastiche, so they lose some of the freshness of most of the novel.
Still quite highly recommended for an easy, entertaining and "life affirming" read
Following Jacob Rigolet who at the start of the book is: (almost) 32, employed as a factotum by an old rich lady of Halifax, though his main job is to go at auctions around the world to bid for various works of art that take Mrs Hamelin's fancy, engaged with Halifax PD detective Martha Crauchet, while his mother Nora, formerly director of the city's public library and now in a "rest hospital" after suffering a breakdown a few years back, comes at one such auction held in the main hotel of Halifax and throws a pot of ink at a famed war (1945, Leipzig) photograph there for auction (not the item Jacob was supposed to bid on, but still enough to cancel the auction and highly annoy his employer of course)
Martha gets the case (interrogate Nora and figure out why etc) and in the process lots of things are unearthed, among others the fact that Jacob was actually born in the Halifax library in April 1945, that it was impossible for his official father to actually be his father (the husband of Nora who was from the US shipped to the UK as a soldier in 1943 and died in Leipzig 2 days after Jacob was born and they never met after he left for war - these two facts form the title of chapter 3 so I wouldn't consider them a major spoiler once you open the book), while a cold case involving two unsolved murders from April 1945 in Halifax, becomes hot again...
And so it goes, alternating from whimsical to more serious and the book is a pleasure to read throughout, though the last few chapters become a little predictable as the book wants to be a noir pastiche, so they lose some of the freshness of most of the novel.
Still quite highly recommended for an easy, entertaining and "life affirming" read
March 21, 2017
There's a story here but it is well-hidden underneath layers of noir-ish tribute language. If only this had been a real noir story with dark issues and murky characters. Instead, like the radio program that constantly plays in the background of this tale, this story is too-cute by a half. Who still listened to radio in the 1970s? Our intrepid police detective and her librarian-to-be fiancé who spend most evenings listening to the radio and imagining themselves in their very own noir radio mystery. I wish I enjoyed this more, as it was, the whole endeavor just began to get on my nerves. I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley.
April 2, 2017
In one shocking moment, Jacob Rigolet's mother damages a rare photograph from World War II, and suddenly he realizes he's not the man he thought he was.
This was certainly a weird book and I'm not quite sure I even understand what happened with the mystery, but with a nod to classic noir, an interwoven old time radio show, and librarians, it all added up to be rather enjoyable.
This was certainly a weird book and I'm not quite sure I even understand what happened with the mystery, but with a nod to classic noir, an interwoven old time radio show, and librarians, it all added up to be rather enjoyable.
March 4, 2017
The tag line on this novel, “A witty, engrossing homage to noir from National Book Award finalist Howard Norman” was enough to both get me to give it a try while simultaneously raising alarm bells in my mind that I would hate it. The word “noir” always peeks my interest and conjures up images of James Ellroy, James M. Cain, femme fatales, and fedoras. So I was excited to open this up to the first page and begin reading. But the phrase “National Book Award finalist” is enough, normally, for me to steer clear and prevent myself from being exposed to the high-brow prose that my literati friends try to foist upon me. It’s almost as bad as being a winner of the Man Booker Prize for fiction.
Regardless, plunge into the novel I did. It was immediately obvious that I would really like the book, given the nature of its sheer readability. There were no attempts by the author (and no need) to impress the reader with his extensive vocabulary, paint any absurd literary word pictures or provide paragraph after paragraph of over-the-top exposition. Instead, the book transcends such artificial definitions of “literature” and instead captures the story itself. What a relief!
The plot takes place in Nova Scotia during the late 1970s and is told from the first-person perspective of Jacob Rigolet who, at the beginning of the novel, works as an assistant to a wealthy art collector who specializes in collecting photographs. When Jacob’s mother casually enters one of the art auctions and inexplicably throws black ink on one particular photograph “Death on a Leipzig Balcony” by Robert Capa at the very end of WWII, (for the uninitiated, Robert Capa is arguably the greatest combat and adventure photographer in history), the mystery aspect of the novel begins. Why would she do such a thing? Jacob’s fiancé, Martha, a smart and competent police detective, gets assigned to the case and before long a complex history of Jacob’s family emerges, including a dangerous cold case and revelations of the identity of his real father.
To employ an over-used phrase, reading this novel proved to be like peeling back the proverbial onion. There are so many layers to the plot, including flashback scenes, letters from the past, and a variety of interesting characters. But the story is not in the least confusing and I never got that feeling of “what’s really going on here?” like I do with a lot of authors who are “finalists for the National Book Award.” There is a fair amount of witty humor as well as emotional and even poignant moments. The noir aspects run throughout the novel as the plot unfolds but I loved the way Jacob and Martha regularly listened to a 1940’s era radio drama called “Detective Levy Detects” which features Detective Frederick Levy and the love of his life and partner in sleuthing, Leah Diamond. In many ways, the radio drama reflected what was happening in Jacob’s and Martha’s life, especially at the end when their own lives take on even more “noirness” than the radio program.
Overall, I was wonderfully impressed by this novel and enjoyed it all the way through. It’s one of those books that you just want to keep on reading, throwing aside such arbitrary intrusions as eating and sleeping and going to work.
My highest recommendation.
Regardless, plunge into the novel I did. It was immediately obvious that I would really like the book, given the nature of its sheer readability. There were no attempts by the author (and no need) to impress the reader with his extensive vocabulary, paint any absurd literary word pictures or provide paragraph after paragraph of over-the-top exposition. Instead, the book transcends such artificial definitions of “literature” and instead captures the story itself. What a relief!
The plot takes place in Nova Scotia during the late 1970s and is told from the first-person perspective of Jacob Rigolet who, at the beginning of the novel, works as an assistant to a wealthy art collector who specializes in collecting photographs. When Jacob’s mother casually enters one of the art auctions and inexplicably throws black ink on one particular photograph “Death on a Leipzig Balcony” by Robert Capa at the very end of WWII, (for the uninitiated, Robert Capa is arguably the greatest combat and adventure photographer in history), the mystery aspect of the novel begins. Why would she do such a thing? Jacob’s fiancé, Martha, a smart and competent police detective, gets assigned to the case and before long a complex history of Jacob’s family emerges, including a dangerous cold case and revelations of the identity of his real father.
To employ an over-used phrase, reading this novel proved to be like peeling back the proverbial onion. There are so many layers to the plot, including flashback scenes, letters from the past, and a variety of interesting characters. But the story is not in the least confusing and I never got that feeling of “what’s really going on here?” like I do with a lot of authors who are “finalists for the National Book Award.” There is a fair amount of witty humor as well as emotional and even poignant moments. The noir aspects run throughout the novel as the plot unfolds but I loved the way Jacob and Martha regularly listened to a 1940’s era radio drama called “Detective Levy Detects” which features Detective Frederick Levy and the love of his life and partner in sleuthing, Leah Diamond. In many ways, the radio drama reflected what was happening in Jacob’s and Martha’s life, especially at the end when their own lives take on even more “noirness” than the radio program.
Overall, I was wonderfully impressed by this novel and enjoyed it all the way through. It’s one of those books that you just want to keep on reading, throwing aside such arbitrary intrusions as eating and sleeping and going to work.
My highest recommendation.
April 14, 2017
Ratings (1 to 5)
Writing: 5
Plot: 5
Characters: 4
Emotional impact: 4
Overall rating: 4.5
Writing: 5
Plot: 5
Characters: 4
Emotional impact: 4
Overall rating: 4.5
September 27, 2020
Droll and engaging.
April 10, 2017
3.5 My second one by this author. I like the way he writes, no fluff, no flowery language, but yet still interesting and with a good eye toward dialogue. My one and only quibble was in there not being more of an explanation as to why one or two people reacted the way they did back in the old days and then why they reacted as they did in the present time. But other than that, I enjoyed reading this book about Halifax in the 1970's.
July 1, 2017
In the beginning of this Canadian Noir book I thought, wow, there are tantalizing trails on the surface leading to what must be fascinating depths below.
About halfway through, I thought, well, this is slowly paced, and not very interesting, but surely those trails laid out in the first chapters will lead somewhere interesting soon.
And then I finished the book and thought, what a boring waste of my time.
About halfway through, I thought, well, this is slowly paced, and not very interesting, but surely those trails laid out in the first chapters will lead somewhere interesting soon.
And then I finished the book and thought, what a boring waste of my time.
May 20, 2017
A mix of noir, historical mystery, and library life. Sadly, less than meets the eye.
April 8, 2017
Disclaimer: I am a huge fan of Howard Norman, I have read all of his work, and I have had him as a guest author with my adult students over many years. With that out of the way, please allow me to say that this latest novel was truly a tour de force, utilizing all of Norman's narrative powers and echoing many of his tropes from previous works. The combination of noir and humor is pleasing, a mature perspective that I think improves with the age and experience of the author. Anyone can Google the plot and even other reviews. Suffice it for me to say that this novel reminded me of Fargo (the Coen Brothers Film) with the pregnant detective, the threats to persons, the macabre events. At the same time, the time travel between WWII and the 1977 setting of the action created shadow stories, as did the radio play that Martha, the detective, loved to follow.
Read Howard Norman for pleasure, read Howard Norman for depth, read Howard Norman for history, but whatever your purpose, read Howard Norman.
Read Howard Norman for pleasure, read Howard Norman for depth, read Howard Norman for history, but whatever your purpose, read Howard Norman.
January 23, 2018
The son of a highly respected librarian is shocked when his mother shows up at an 1970s auction and throws a jar of ink on the main attraction, a photo from WWII.
Considering she should be in Arts and Crafts at the Nova Scotia Rest Home after her recent breakdown, it shocks everyone. His fiancée is the detective assigned to the case which then connects to a cold case that leads to family secrets being revealed. I really enjoyed this book. It runs a little slow in the beginning; power through.
It’s hard to pin down the genre. Is it a detective mystery? A family drama? Librarian literature? I don’t know, but I recommend it.
Considering she should be in Arts and Crafts at the Nova Scotia Rest Home after her recent breakdown, it shocks everyone. His fiancée is the detective assigned to the case which then connects to a cold case that leads to family secrets being revealed. I really enjoyed this book. It runs a little slow in the beginning; power through.
It’s hard to pin down the genre. Is it a detective mystery? A family drama? Librarian literature? I don’t know, but I recommend it.
October 7, 2025
A bit of literary noir - and I am reminded why I love books, why I love brilliant writing, and how I love the places words take me to.
Jacob Ricolet is a good man, young and unsure of what he wants to do with his life. So rather than taking charge of his life, life takes charge of him - and he doesn't mind. He is clever, loves his widowed mother Nora and his fiance Martha. Everything appears to be fine, until it begins to unravel, this piece and that. Who is his father? Why is his sanitarium bound mother obsessed with a photograph? What will happen next on his and Martha's favourite radio drama?
One of those stories where not a lot happens on the surface, but just below, everything is roiling.
Howard Norman might be my new favourite writer!
Jacob Ricolet is a good man, young and unsure of what he wants to do with his life. So rather than taking charge of his life, life takes charge of him - and he doesn't mind. He is clever, loves his widowed mother Nora and his fiance Martha. Everything appears to be fine, until it begins to unravel, this piece and that. Who is his father? Why is his sanitarium bound mother obsessed with a photograph? What will happen next on his and Martha's favourite radio drama?
One of those stories where not a lot happens on the surface, but just below, everything is roiling.
Howard Norman might be my new favourite writer!
April 16, 2017
Charming story that at times seemed a little sappy. Yet these are real people even only in the mind of Howard Norman and his readers. Overall, he writes a good story.
July 4, 2017
A bit quirky (hey, it's nova scotia, after all) but really nice read. Could be an interesting series.
July 10, 2017
Such a cool book! Norman's books are always unconventional and fascinating and well written, and this one is no exception. It has many elements of a detective story, especially one that is quite noir, but it is its own creature. This one is very humorous in fact and has a happy ending. Highly recommended.
April 27, 2017
Say now, was this ever a romp. Norman is a treat, and even when he goes noir on us he does so with style, wit and campy (but not silly) humor. A dame and a gent, an art mystery, some murder, a dash of war history, and libraries. Old-timey radio, dinner parties, questions of paternity, a bad cop and a worse cop. What more could you want? Fun, fast, and good.
I received a review copy from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
I received a review copy from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
December 25, 2022
A beautiful nod to noir. A fresh, intriguing plot and prose that keeps surprising you with witty dialogue , nice imagery and rich multilayered narrative. Happy to stumble on this piece of fiction and more happy to know the author in person
October 18, 2017
What a shame to give a single star to one of my favorite writers! Howard Norman has delighted me in the past with his quirky characters -- "The Bird Artists," "The Museum Guard" -- and brilliant evocation of place --"The Northern Lights," "I Hate to Leave this Beautiful Place -- but in "My Darling Detective" he reaches for a blend of screwball comedy and noir detective mystery that just doesn't work, particularly with its backdrop of World War II fighting in Europe and anti-Jewish behavior in Maritime Canada.
The year is 1977. Jacob Rigolet is employed by Mrs. Hamelin, a wealthy collector of photographic art. He travels the world to bid on pieces for his patron's collection. When a woman who attempts to vandalize a photograph at auction in his hometown of Halifax, Nova Scotia turns out to be Jacob's mother Nora, the detective assigned to question the perpetrator is Jacob's fiancée Martha Crauchet. Got that?
The mystery behind the photograph, "Death on a Leipzig Balcony" by Robert Capa (April 18, 1945) and Nora's antipathy toward it is what propels the mystery forward as Jacob and Martha discover the circumstances behind Jacob's birth, his parentage and birthplace. Enter two lovable sidekicks, Hodgson and Tides, the pursuit of a cold case somehow connected to Nora's past, and the importance of the Halifax Free Library where Nora is head librarian.
Norman has cleverly woven together the makings of a '40s radio play. Parallel to the Rigolet mystery is Jacob and Martha's nightly ritual of listening to an actual radio serial, "Detective Levy Detects," as foreplay to their own lovemaking. Their story becomes intertwined with Levy's and his gun moll Leah Diamond's. Norman puts in a lot of work into bringing it all off, but somehow, with all the clever repartee and the cultural references to the 1970s, Jacob and Nora's characters are never fully fleshed out and the mystery's wrap-up is unsatisfying. Additionally, the second half of the book is interspersed with four letters from Bernard Rigolet. They are ploddingly predictable.
Likely, the Capa photograph inspired Norman's book. It was published in the Victory edition of Life magazine and became memorialized as The Last Man to Die by Capa. The derelict 19th century apartment building where the photograph was shot was restored by a group of Leipzigers in 2016 as the Capa House.
The year is 1977. Jacob Rigolet is employed by Mrs. Hamelin, a wealthy collector of photographic art. He travels the world to bid on pieces for his patron's collection. When a woman who attempts to vandalize a photograph at auction in his hometown of Halifax, Nova Scotia turns out to be Jacob's mother Nora, the detective assigned to question the perpetrator is Jacob's fiancée Martha Crauchet. Got that?
The mystery behind the photograph, "Death on a Leipzig Balcony" by Robert Capa (April 18, 1945) and Nora's antipathy toward it is what propels the mystery forward as Jacob and Martha discover the circumstances behind Jacob's birth, his parentage and birthplace. Enter two lovable sidekicks, Hodgson and Tides, the pursuit of a cold case somehow connected to Nora's past, and the importance of the Halifax Free Library where Nora is head librarian.
Norman has cleverly woven together the makings of a '40s radio play. Parallel to the Rigolet mystery is Jacob and Martha's nightly ritual of listening to an actual radio serial, "Detective Levy Detects," as foreplay to their own lovemaking. Their story becomes intertwined with Levy's and his gun moll Leah Diamond's. Norman puts in a lot of work into bringing it all off, but somehow, with all the clever repartee and the cultural references to the 1970s, Jacob and Nora's characters are never fully fleshed out and the mystery's wrap-up is unsatisfying. Additionally, the second half of the book is interspersed with four letters from Bernard Rigolet. They are ploddingly predictable.
Likely, the Capa photograph inspired Norman's book. It was published in the Victory edition of Life magazine and became memorialized as The Last Man to Die by Capa. The derelict 19th century apartment building where the photograph was shot was restored by a group of Leipzigers in 2016 as the Capa House.
August 9, 2018
Books should generally be about something, have something to say; a point. This one probably does but for the life of me I can't tell you what it is.
I liked bits and pieces, but felt deprived of any kind of payoff. Disappointing.
I liked bits and pieces, but felt deprived of any kind of payoff. Disappointing.
July 19, 2024
DNF - really liked it but hit an anxiety nerve, will try again some other time
June 14, 2017
A photograph taken by Robert Capa in Leipzig, Death on a Leipzig Balcony, shortly before the end of the war is up for auction in Halifax. Jacob Rigolet is there at the request of his employer, a wealthy woman who sends him around the world to bid on photographs for her collection. In this case he didn't have to travel far, as he and she live in Halifax.
So begins the investigation into why Jacob’s mother, formerly the head librarian at the Halifax Free Library, would want to destroy the photograph. In the novel, the man crawling out of the shadows towards the dead American soldier, is Bernard Rigolet, Jake’s father. Though the photograph was not destroyed, as it was under glass, Jake’s fiancee, Detective Martha Crauchet of the Halifax Regional Police, intends to get to the bottom of this. There are many humorous elements to this story, steeped in noir. In bed, Jake and Martha often listen to her favorite radio show, a vintage, melodramatic drama, Detective Levy Detects, featuring a time traveling detective and his girlfriend. “As Martha begins to visit Jake’s mother in the hospital during arts and crafts, Jake enrolls in school to become a librarian. “‘Every episode is like American noir, except in Canada.’ Martha once said…[but in Jake’s opinion] noir is noir, and it’s the atmosphere that counts.’”
As Detectives Tide and Hodgdon, who Martha calls the “good cop and bad cop” discover a former police officer named Robert Emil’s name in the files on Jake’s mother My Darling Detective takes on a new angle. Both of these cases directly affect Jake. Emil had been implicated in anti-Semitic incidents during WWII. In fact he had been implicated in the murder of a member of the Baron de Hirsch Synagogue and a witness to the murder. It was never proven, and he had disappeared. This brings a darker note to the novel as the investigation into Emil’s whereabouts heats up.
I really liked this book. I'd only read one book by Howard Norman before, The Bird Artist, which was fantastic. I don't think My Darling Detective was consistently as great as the opening suggests, but it is quite engaging. The great WWII photographer Robert Capa's Death on a Leipzig Balcony that is the basis of this book can be found at http://www.leegallery.com/robert-capa....
The auction was held at 5 p.m. in the street-level drawing room of the Lord Nelson hotel here in Halifax. "Death On A Leipzig Balcony" by Robert Capa was the first item on the docket. The auctioneer had just said taken on April 18, 1945, when my mother, Nora Ives - married name Nora Ives Rigolet - walked almost casually up the center aisle and flung an open jar of black ink at the photograph. I heard, no it can't be you. But it was my own voice already trying to refute the incident. My mother was tackled to the floor by the auctioneer's assistant. An octopus of ink sent tentacles down the glass. My mother was lifted roughly to her feet by two security guards and escorted from the room. And here I thought she was safely tucked away in Nova Scotia Rest Hospital across the harbor in Dartmouth, room 340.
So begins the investigation into why Jacob’s mother, formerly the head librarian at the Halifax Free Library, would want to destroy the photograph. In the novel, the man crawling out of the shadows towards the dead American soldier, is Bernard Rigolet, Jake’s father. Though the photograph was not destroyed, as it was under glass, Jake’s fiancee, Detective Martha Crauchet of the Halifax Regional Police, intends to get to the bottom of this. There are many humorous elements to this story, steeped in noir. In bed, Jake and Martha often listen to her favorite radio show, a vintage, melodramatic drama, Detective Levy Detects, featuring a time traveling detective and his girlfriend. “As Martha begins to visit Jake’s mother in the hospital during arts and crafts, Jake enrolls in school to become a librarian. “‘Every episode is like American noir, except in Canada.’ Martha once said…[but in Jake’s opinion] noir is noir, and it’s the atmosphere that counts.’”
As Detectives Tide and Hodgdon, who Martha calls the “good cop and bad cop” discover a former police officer named Robert Emil’s name in the files on Jake’s mother My Darling Detective takes on a new angle. Both of these cases directly affect Jake. Emil had been implicated in anti-Semitic incidents during WWII. In fact he had been implicated in the murder of a member of the Baron de Hirsch Synagogue and a witness to the murder. It was never proven, and he had disappeared. This brings a darker note to the novel as the investigation into Emil’s whereabouts heats up.
I really liked this book. I'd only read one book by Howard Norman before, The Bird Artist, which was fantastic. I don't think My Darling Detective was consistently as great as the opening suggests, but it is quite engaging. The great WWII photographer Robert Capa's Death on a Leipzig Balcony that is the basis of this book can be found at http://www.leegallery.com/robert-capa....
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