So Dear to Wicked Men

I picked up this book through a used bookseller and am so glad I did!(as it's out-of-print currently) I was eager to read the Nick and Julia Lambros mysteries in order (anal as I am) and this is the first in the series.I had expected something fairly interesting, but I was honestly hooked by the first page (and that doesn't happen to me frequently!)...Nick and Julia are the owners of the Oracle Diner in Delphi, Georgia (get it?) but business is a bit slow and they're down on their luck. When murder stops by in the form of a loyal patron having a heart attack during breakfast, the Lambros' are suspect since the autopsy shows poison! Yes, you've all heard this one before, but the characters are so pleasant and the mystery so juicy, that I had long overlooked this overused setup.Needless to say, it's up to Nick and Julia to figure out exactly which one of their patrons is the killer, and they end up getting involved in an illegal immigrant smuggling scheme along their way.Nick and Julia are terrific protagonists and I can only imagine the authors are both very much in love as it shows quite evidently in the relationship between our two main characters.Dealing with being shunned as a murderer, Greek emigrant Nick has his green card taken away by the local sheriff as more people in the town display their ethnocentricity for the 'outsider' since he's a murder suspect.It just gets better and better from there!The mystery wraps up so well, I was surprised that this was really the first attempt from the authors to create a cogent and well thought-out mystery that was both so entertaining and so readable! (not to mention that you'll learn a word or 2 of Greek before you're done!).... Looking forward to the next in the series! (yes-I already bought it the day I finished this one!)...

I LOVED this book. (I ordered the second in the series, and can't wait for more to be published.) It was very fresh, witty (but definitely not cutesy), innovative, and entertaining. Highly recommended.

This book is not easy to summarize without revealing too much of the plot. I'll just say that the plot is original, the twists are clever, the characters entertaining and the book as a whole is smart. You'll enjoy reading this book from the first page to the last.

Restaurateurs, Nick and Julie Lambros, are very proud that the long hard work has turned the Oracle Cafe in Delphi, Georgia, into a smashing success. However, the world takes a quick downturn when a relative newcomer, Glenn Bohannon, who is sitting with the restaurant's regulars, several local businessmen, suddenly collapses and dies from food poisoning. Sheriff Cal Taylor firmly believes that the Lambros murdered a potential rival (Glenn was thinking of opening up a Tex-Mex restaurant). Realizing that not only is their business now in trouble, but they are the prime suspects, the Lambros begin to investigate Glenn's background. As they get closer to identifying who set them up to take the fall, the Lambros begin to receive threats and attacks on their lives. These dastardly deeds propel the couple into illegally breaking and entering, and stealing records that uncover the truth behind Glenn's death and a subsequent second murder. SO DEAR TO WICKED MEN is a fabulous debut novel that is highlighted by a charming pair of amateur sleuths and a wonderful group of supporting players. The who-done-it is interesting and cleverly developed, but it is Nick and Julie (not Nora) who ultimately turn Takis and Judy Iakovou's novel into the beginning of, what is hopefully, a long term series. Harriet Klausner