Death by Station Wagon

Kit Deleeuw is a private detective in Rochambeau, New Jersey, an affluent suburb. Deleeuw used to work on Wall Street but was fired in a scandal which almost sent him to prison.Two kids from the local high school are found dead on the Brown estate. It looks to the police like a murder-suicide. The Brown estate is sought by developers who will pay $60,000,000 just for the land. The two dead students are Ken Dale and Carol Lombardi. Friends of Ken approach Kit for help in clearing Ken's name. They do not think he was capable of committing the crime.In the end we realize the town has not changed much in the last century. It is still marked by greed for land and money. Kit's position as a suburban detective becomes firmly established. He goes from the dog house of Wall Street to being a hero to his family and community.

Death By Station Wagon is a great first-of-series mystery by Jon Katz. I found the situation of the protagonist, Kit Deleeuw, one that I had not seen before. The stay-at-home (sometimes) father and husband making a new way in life after his career on Wall Street has been shattered by scandal and innuendo. As a storefront detective, his cases seem rather ordinary, except for the expertise used in telling the story. A simple case combined with some history leads the reader on a wild ride through suburbia. A great read.

Yes, this is a good detective story, but the surprising part is the new look at suburbia. Here is the normal, prozaic good life considered in the context of murder. How does a man who loses his former life as a stock broker, rebuild it. He has seen through the social definitions. This gives him a warmly cynical view - if the two words can fit together. I have enjoyed this and all his other books

I found this book by accident and then couldn't put it down. It is well-written, the characters are developed well,the plot very interesting and believable. I have since bought the rest of the books in this series and hope Katz continues the Suburban Detective.