Detective Inspector Franz Heineken of the Tasmanian Police Force is nicknamed Pufferfish, described as A prickly, toxic bastard, ability to inflate and even explode when severely provoked. In this outing he is confronted by several high-profile cases including the theft of a valuable diamond necklace, the death of a well-known actor which is reported as suicide until the actor's girlfriend claims it was murder and the vicious beating of a young Indian woman. Heineken and his team, DC Faye Addison and DS Rafe Tredway, think they know which of the island's criminal fraternity is responsible for the necklace theft but they have a devil of a time proving it as their prime suspect has claimed police harassment before so they must tread very carefully indeed. The investigation into the actor's death meanwhile introduces the police to an entirely new suspect pool and the somewhat debauched behaviour one might associate with Hollywood.

The book makes excellent use of the first-person point of view by showing us not only what Pufferfish sees and hears but also what he thinks about what he is seeing and hearing via a dry, acerbic internal monologue. Seeing the public/professional face of the man as well as his more private thoughts provides both entertainment and a depth to the character that it would be hard to get across in any other way (especially as the novel is refreshingly short). Although his work does take up most of his time we do get some glimpses into Heineken's home life as we meet his slightly clandestine girlfriend and his adult daughter and learn about his idyllic-sounding beach shack.

Happily there is a first rate mystery in the book too. Often this aspect of a humourous crime novel can be a little lacking but here there are two very interesting main crimes and neither goes in the direction one imagines at the outset. Although the book maintains a fast pace, Owen has still managed to depict the complications and temporary stalling that such investigations must surely take which gives a very believable feeling to the whole thing. Another element of the book which helps the credibility factor is the very natural-sounding dialogue both between the team members and with the various suspects.

To wrap up this very entertaining package the book also offers a strong sense of its setting. The positives (outstanding scenery, still-present sense of history and a lively community spirit) and negatives (isolation from the rest of the world, not always welcoming to strangers) of Tasmania are incorporated seamlessly into the story and the writing and overall tone of the book is very, very Australian. There were a couple of sentences even I had to read twice to understand, though as they both contained sporting metaphors it's not terribly surprising.

Knowing absolutely nothing about a book or its author before cracking a book's spine is a pretty rare occurrence for me these days and I savour the complete lack of expectation that accompanies the experience. It took me only a few pages to become completely hooked by this clever, topical story and its deliciously off-beat characters. Highly recommended. ( )

It's just so heartening to know that the Pufferfish Series lives on that it's difficult to remain objective about the latest book. HOW THE DEAD SEE is the second of the re-emergence of David Owen's much loved, acerbic, dry, funny, dark and quite prickly Detective Inspector Franz Heineken.

There are some things that never change in these books - Pufferfish (his nickname is a direct correlation between Heineken's prickly, dangerous, lurking personality and that of the fish in question), is, as always, dry, prickly, and acerbic, with the addition of being quietly and pointedly determined to see the crooks go down. The crimes are always nicely balanced - in this case the supposed suicide of local boy made big-time Hollywood movie star (before he went downhill), and the theft of very valuable jewellery from another location altogether. Both crimes that Pufferfish and his team, in a small force like the Tasmanian Police Force, have to juggle simultaneously. Along the way they manage the priorities of stakeouts in less salubrious parts with the wealth and weirdness of those that circle even a falling Hollywood star.

All of the Pufferfish series are told in first-person, straight from the mouth of Pufferfish. His observations, his thoughts, his voice is therefore central to the books, and the irony and sarcasm often drip almost visually from the words on the page. Everybody is a target for his baleful eye - even himself. Nobody avoids Pufferfish scrutiny, nobody is forgotten (much to the chagrin of the old Tasmania crim collective), nothing is ever missed. It's not just the sarcasm that's visual, there's an image of Pufferfish that builds up as you read these books - you can see the man, you can hear him mutter, you can feel how skewering that gaze would be. And the books are funny. Maybe not laugh out loud funny, but you can't help but smile, you can't help but feel a snigger at some points. You can't help but almost feel sorry for the poor hapless fools that think they can go up against Detective Inspector Franz Heineken and not come out just a little bit burned.

The ongoing life of the Pufferfish series is a thing of great joy. David Owen created a fabulous character all those years ago, and HOW THE DEAD SEE is the latest in some terrific books.

You can purchase this and the earlier book in the re-emerged series NO WEATHER FOR A BURIAL direct from http://www.fortysouth.com.au ( )