The three partners in the detective agency founded by the Nameless Detective undertake three separate cases, each exhibiting a common characteristic: betrayal. In alternating chapters, each case is developed until solved, whether the driving force is personal (in the case of Tamara), involves a child (Runyon) or the elderly (Nameless).
Tamara’s case begins as something personal, but evolves into something deeper as she learns more about a sometime lover. It appears he and his mother are con artists bilking gullible marks for phony charities. Runyon’s assignment is to find a bail jumper, which leads to finding a different kind of betrayal, pitting brother against brother and husband against wife. Nameless takes on a pro bono case in which an old woman is being harassed, possibly to force her out of her home so her relative can gain access to funds from its sale, and. more importantly, when Nameless returns home to discover his adopted daughter has a secret which leads him to yet another ugly situation.
The Nameless Detective series began in 1966 and now constitutes 34 novels and three short story collections, and is said to be the longest running of its kind. This novel easily could have been three separate short stories, comprising equally entertaining, classic private eye fiction, but is well-written and splendid in its present form nonetheless. Recommended.
