A review by tamarant4
Give the Devil His Due by Steve Hockensmith

emotional lighthearted tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

One thing I had learned for sure about tarot readings: Doing them while driving wasn’t a great idea. [p. 131]

Alanis is dealing with the unexpected arrival of a man she'd thought dead: Biddle, who was the closest she had to a father, and who she last saw being led off by some people who wanted him dead. Now he's here in Arizona -- but does he have an ulterior motive? Could his reappearance be connected with a middle-aged man, found murdered at a local hotel shortly after getting a tarot reading from Alanis?

What about the German tycoon who's taking an interest in the town? And the stolen Van Gogh that Alanis may unwittingly hold the key to recovering? And the delightful Fixer, gun for hire? (Not to mention the two ageing thugs who muscle in on Alanis' investigation: 'They weren’t old. Not so long as somebody feared them.')

This was a quick and entertaining read - I was kept guessing by the plot, and am sad to discover that there are no further novels in the series (yet). Will Alanis decide which of her suitors (boring Victor, petty criminal G.W.) is worthy? Will Clarice live up to her potential? Will the White Magic Five and Dime ever break even?

One niggle: persons in the middle of an investigation who don't answer the phone / check their voicemail. (This also came up in The Widows of Malabar.) Obviously they're not expecting any urgent plot points updates about their case...