Escape Clause by John Sanford

In John Sandford’s ninth mystery in his Virgil Flowers series, our protagonist is assigned to the case of the kidnapped Amur tigers from the Minnesota zoo.  This rare and endangered animal species is known in the Chinese culture for medicinal value of its body organs and bones.  Authorities are worried the tigers are being slaughtered for their body parts so anyone suspected of dealing in black market animals is on the list to be interrogated.

 

As usual in John Sanford novels, a parallel story line follows the antics of the criminals.  A disgraced doctor has mastered minded the caper and his accomplices are two brothers skilled in animal slaughter.  As Virgil closes in, those close to the crime begin to die, one by one, an apparent attempt to conceal the offense.

Virgil gets sidetracked by his latest girlfriend, Frankie and her family problems.  Virgil has become serious about a longer term relationship with Frankie and has moved into her ranch house.  Frankie’s mischievous sister, Sparkle has also moved in for the summer to complete her research on working conditions of migrant workers.  Not everyone welcomes her intrusion, including Frankie when Sparkle turns Virgil’s wandering eye.

Escape Clause is more less an airplane book… not much intrigue or mystery since the author keeps you clued into what the villains are doing.  But the likability of the easy going, Virgil Flowers who sports a vintage rock band T-shirt and dusty cowboy boots and frequently forgets his gun, keeps you engaged to the end… unpretentious, high quality entertainment.