Gray Ghost

This is more than a good mystery yarn; it's a well-written novel. It's thoughtful; it has interesting, flawed, mature characters; it's often eloquent. Stoney Calhoun is a keeper. Let's hope for more of him from Tapply.

We first met man-of-mystery and Maine fishing guide Stoney Calhoun in [...] CREEK. There we learned that Stoney didn't always live a slow, simple, and rustic life -- but exactly what he'd done before he was zapped by lightning, only the Man in the Suit knows, and he never reveals much during his occasional visits. A Gray Ghost is a Maine salmon streamer, a fly that Stoney ties in the outdoor gear shop that he and Kate run. But Stoney also sees a few gray ghosts in human-like form in the area around Quarantine Island, where hundreds of people were once burned to death in a terrible hospital fire. When Stoney and one of his customers find a newly-burned body on that outcropping, they report it to Sheriff Dickman. The county sheriff admires Stoney's obvious investigative prowess so much that he offers to deputize the guide; and this time around, Stoney is glad to help. At first. But after that tourist is also murdered, and Stoney and Dickman find out that the first body belonged to a registered sex offender, our favorite fishing guide begins to have second thoughts about his new, albeit non-paying, duties. How are the two deaths related, anyway? And how can you be objective about the murder of somebody who probably deserved what he got? And while Stoney steadily mulls over the investigation and who the possible suspects might be, he's also dealing with growing tension in his real job. Kate has toned down their personal relationship, and Stoney's finding it difficult to interact with her on a strictly-business basis. Will they ever get back to the way they were? Told in a style that reflects not only Stoney's leisurely style of thinking, but also the pace of rural life in Maine ("The Way Life Should Be"), GRAY GHOST is an excellent stand-alone follow-up to [...] CREEK. In any event, you gotta admire someone who owns a Brittany spaniel named Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Stoney Calhoun's second appearance (after "Bitch Creek") finds the laconic Maine fishing guide still in love with his business partner, bait shack owner Kate Balaban, and still finding himself - literally. Calhoun was struck by lightning seven years ago - or so he's been told. His previous life is a blank, but he keeps discovering talents, such as fly-fishing, and French. And more sinister abilities too - a knack for weapons, including his bare hands, and an eye for dangerous detail. "The man in the suit," an occasional visitor, has hinted he shouldn't remember too much. As the story opens Calhoun embarks on a pre-dawn fishing trip with a new and amiable client, a professor, which ends in the discovery of a charred body on an uninhabited island in Casco Bay. Then the new client is murdered on Calhoun's front porch. He takes that personally and agrees to help his friend Sheriff Dickman investigate. The charred body is a missing child molester with a roster of people who wanted him dead. But who would want to kill the professor? The mystery is nicely handled and well paced, but the real pleasure here is Calhoun's character and the Maine outdoors. Calhoun's laid-back stubbornness and relationship with Kate make him both likable and admirable and you can just about smell the crisp Maine air and feel the tug of the fish on your line. New Hampshire writer Tapply, author of the long-running series featuring Boston lawyer Brady Coyne, has another winner.

I've enjoyed everything I've read by Tapply, including this book and his new book of fly-fishing adventure Trout Eyes. He's a very good writer, and each of his books is a great pleasure.

Years ago lightning hit Stoney Calhoun wiping out his memory like an etch a sketch. After a hospital stay and a strange "payment" check he moved on with no hope of regaining all he lost though slithers seem to surface especially at needed moments. He thinks he may have been involved in some form of law enforcement as he occasionally shows such skills and then there the gray suit that speaks of government periodically coming to Maine. In Stoney's mind he believes the man comes to check up on him; perhaps to see if his memory returned. Still he ignores the suit as he currently is part owner of a Portland, Maine boat with bait and tackle shop on BITCH CREEK where he is an considered an expert on various local fishing spots Stoney takes out a client fishing on a nearby island. However, their angling is interrupted when they stumble upon a burned corpse. Not planning to get involved except for answering police questions, Stoney soon wonders what is going on when his customer is soon afterward also murdered. Unable to stay out of the investigation and wondering if he could be next, Stoney begins inquiries into who the killer is. Fans of William G. Tapply's Brady Coyne will enjoy this fresh protagonist whose skills remain latent until he needs them. The story line is action-packed as Stoney may be doing an amateur sleuth investigation, but in spite of his lost memory he is a pro. Readers will appreciate this exciting New England whodunit starring a fascinating hero and seek his previous appearance (see BITCH CREEK). Harriet Klausner