"Baby Shark's Jugglers at the Border" by Robert Fate

A Book Review

Robert Fate´s fourth Baby Shark mystery begins much like the third, with his tough protagonist, Kristin Van Dijk confronting thugs in an abandoned farmhouse at the end of a dusty road. There is the requisite shoot out, arrival of the police, and proud "atta-girl" from her PI partner Otis Millett.

But JUGGLERS AT THE BORDER veers sharply from that point into a case that stirs up bittersweet memories for one of the oddly matched pair. This time, as the story unfolds, readers will glimpse a slice of Otis´ past; of a tender, not-quite-forgotten love that begs closure.

When Lieutenant Lynch of the Fort Worth Police asks Otis to identify a body, the tough PI is shocked to find his estranged wife lying in the morgue.

He´s less surprised to learn that the ex-stripper was a victim in a bank heist gone wrong. She´d been holding out on the gang, but which of them had come back to settle the score? And where had Dixie stashed the $3 million?

As Kristin goes undercover in an attempt to lure the killer, she´s knocked around by a pair of mean-faced thugs despite her partner´s watchful eye. But nothing deters this gal. She gives head-butts, eye-gouges, and punches as good as she gets. And she´ll shoot a man without blinking an eye.

There are times when this female "fighting machine" comes across as almost too masculine. It´s a risk the author took when he decided to write hard-boiled crime fiction from the POV of a young woman. But it works most of the time, and it doesn´t prevent readers from rooting for his heroine.

Those who´ve read the first book in the series and watched Kristin change from helpless victim to avenging angel will not be surprised or disappointed by the strangely gratifying brutality in Fate´s books. It´s what they´ve come to expect.

In contrast to the violent action is Otis´ unexpected introspection, almost nostalgia, as he recalls his good times with Dixie. Instead of softening him however, it drives his determination to capture her murderer.

The manhunt is tortuous. The killer stays just out of reach while leaving a grisly trail of wounded and dead in his wake. Kristin and Otis persevere, but are as surprised as the killer (and the reader) at how it all ends – satisfying, but definitely unusual.

Fate´s fast-paced, action-packed BABY SHARK books are hard to put down. They are short enough to read in one breathless, heart-pounding sitting, yet meaty enough to satisfy the thoughtful armchair detective. And this one has great character development which will carry Fate´s PI partners through several more exciting books.