 Chris Knopf’s Sam Acquillo
Hamptons Mystery Series, The Last Refuge, Two Time, Head
Wounds and Hard
Stop has received rave reviews from The New York Times,
Boston Globe, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, Deadly Pleasures, Crimespree
and a host of other key publications, inside and out of the mystery
scene. Though in some ways a classic amateur sleuth, Sam
puts an idiosyncratic spin on the hardboiled genre. |
|
A Long Island Mystery
The Hamptons Mystery Series books are filled with intricate
plots, rhapsodies on Long Island’s bucolic South Fork and
quirky oddball characters, not the least of whom is the curvy,
in-your-face, pot smoking lawyer Jackie Swaitkowski, who is now
starring in her own series, beginning in January, 2010, with Short
Squeeze from
Thomas Dunne/St. Martin’s Press.
And for anyone who loves dogs in mysteries, they’re sure
to fall for Eddie Van Halen, the independent mutt who lives with
Sam. Kirkus calls Eddie the “anti-Marley” and
it’s clear from fans’ and reviewers’ commentary
that Eddie is nearly as important a character as Sam himself.
While clearly intended as pleasant diversions, Knopf’s
mysteries also delve into the social dynamics of the Hamptons,
exploring the tensions and interdependencies between the invading
moneyed glitterati and the stalwart locals who make up the backbone
of the community. The North Sea area of the Town of Southampton
is the pivotal locale, but Sam and Jackie’s adventures
frequently take them to East Hampton, Bridgehampton, Sag Harbor,
Nassau County and all the way to New York City, the sun around
which the Hamptons orbit. |
