Murder on Martha's Vineyard

Nancy Ryan's return to Martha's Vineyard with new husband David Webster is a shock to the locals--who thought she'd never come back after being acquitted (dubiously) of the murder of first husband Jim (a wife-beater). So, aware of the general feeling, Nancy has hired aging detective Timothy O'Hara to find the real killer. But, unbeknownst to all, Nancy has a psychotic enemy in Andy Fisher, handyman and gardener, whose (undeclared) idée fixe that Nancy would marry him has changed to bitter hatred over the years. And now Fisher puts into action a plan of kidnapping, ransom, and murder. . . which isn't easy to bring off in a small, gossipy island community. More psycho-gothic suspense than murder mystery--but some tidy vignettes of year-round residents and much affectionate local color make this a pleasant enough minor-thrills diversion. -Kirkus Reviews