Dance for the Dead

by Thomas Perry

Book two in the Jane Whitefield novels and now I'm convinced, in my opinion, Jane qualifies as a superhero! As usual the book starts with a bang, Jane running in a courthouse holding the hand of a youngster and not quite dodging fists and bad guys as only she can, successfully, to rush him into a particular courtroom before the eight year old is declared dead or he is killed right there. Turns out Timmy Phillips is worth millions and if he is declared dead all his millions gets donated to charity. That's not why bad guys are trying to kill him though, turns out someone has been siphoning out a big amount of the money, and if Timmy shows up alive an auditor might find the discrepancy. Jane reluctantly leaves him in the protection of the court and unknowingly puts herself right into the thick of the case again when a young woman asks for her help, Mary Jenkins needs to disappear, and fast. Bad guys think she has bank accounts of swindled money and turns out the most powerful guy of all will stop at nothing to add her cache to his own. Once again Jane is up against a villain with more resources and money but as usual I'm in awe of her survival skills and sheer guts. Sometimes the high finance plot point left me behind but I think that wouldn't be the case with most readers. Now the wait until the next book in the series arrives.