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The Dangerous Hour

by Marcia Muller

Marcia Muller has come out with a warning to us all in this latest mystery – don't allow yourself to bask in contentment too long when everything seems to be going your way! From July 11 to August 9 Ms. Muller categorizes the events surrounding McCone Investigations, a business enlarged with several important sections, profitable, and ready to take on the most difficult cases – except the one which threatens to bring down the entire organization.

Sharon McCone, Marcia Muller's delightful female protagonist, is riding high. McCone Investigations has expanded, and expects to expand even more. Sharon has employed a young former juvenile con, Julia Rafael, who has worked out well as an all-around operative. Then Julia is arrested – charged with stealing a former client's credit card and running up enormous bills. The items listed on the card statement are found in Julia's property, and the evidence is all against her.

The former client is Alex Aguilar, who had hired McCone Investigations to uncover a series of thefts from his job training center. Julia had been assigned to the case and closed it so successfully that Aguilar was pleased and claimed he'd recommend the detective agency to others. Now he was suddenly accusing Julia of Grand Theft.

Sharon goes to see Craig Moreland, a former FBI man now in her own company, who tells her that Aguilar's partner in business, Scott Wagner, fell over a precipice during a hike. McCone goes to Trabajo por Todos (Work for All) Aguilar's job training center, pretending to be a freelance writer who wants to do an article on them. She meets Gene Santamaria there, who shows her around but cuts her off as soon as she mentions Aguilar, who happens to be out of town.

In all her efforts to free Julia, Sharon wonders at the back of her mind if Julia hasn't actually reverted to her old ways – but she's assured by both Julia's attorney and her own office supervisor that faith in Julia's innocence is paramount. When Julia is finally freed on bail, Sharon finally realizes that the situation with Julia is only a way to bring down McCone Investigations and get at Sharon herself.

Meanwhile, Sharon is faced with a sick cat and her own lover, Hy Ripinsky, being away when she needs him around most. But Sharon is partially glad he's not there – he's asked her to marry him and she's not exactly the marrying kind. Although Sharon loves Hy, she's hesitant about a long term commitment. Ralph, one of her two cats, has diabetes – which involves giving him insulin shots – and Sharon hates needles.

Dan Jeffers is a frightened hippie who claims he saw Scott Wagner murdered – says that Scott didn't fall, but was pushed. Dan is hiding out, fearful of his own life and retribution. Then Johnny Duarte is also discovered at the base of a cliff. Sharon knew that Duarte and Aguilar were connected through drug dealing, but had figured Duarte was Scott's killer. Then she finds a man who is known only by his initials – R. D.

Much happens before Dan Jeffers is killed and Sharon faces not only his killer, but the murderer of all the others as well. Sharon discovers that everything has been planned to bring her down along with her investigative firm – a revenge for putting the murderer in jail a while back for a totally different charge. Sharon manages to escape, but just barely. And at last she succeeds in unmasking this perpetrator - who is attempting to hide behind an insanity plea.

Marcia Muller has done it again. The Dangerous Hour is beautifully written, filled with suspense, brutality, and total disregard for life with the focus on profit and retaliation. The twenty-third of her fictional novels, The Dangerous Hour is superb in describing the sleazier parts of San Francisco and other West Coast cities. Marcia Muller has a flair for telling a gripping tale through the eyes of a very humane heroine. Ms. Muller should
definitely be on your list of favorite mystery authors.

Alan Paul Curtis

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