Jen Shieff

A sequel to THE GENTLEMEN'S CLUB and THE VANISHING ACT, THE FINAL CALL is set in 1979 (10 or so years after THE VANISHING ACT) located in Remuera New Zealand, where Rita Saunders is the boss at The Gentlemen's Club, a high class brothel. Rita's more than a madam to her girls though, and the brothel is more than just a house of prostitution, Rita's girls are comfortable, protected as much as she possibly can and as safe as they can be in a country where prostitution was illegal up until the early 2000's.

Switching the concentration a little in this book, Carmel O'Sullivan, Rita's girlfriend, has been salting away a nest egg of considerable proportions while working at the brothel. She's planning a move away, investment in a respectable business, and a quieter and more genteel life. Hungarian immigrant and handyman at the brothel, Istvan Ziegler, is deeply in love with Carmel, and hopes her new life will include him. Plans for the change are proceeding reasonably well, given there's always the doubt that Carmel will be able to leave Rita, when Carmel's sister Tess, also working at the Club, is found brutally murdered after an appointment with a handsome, seemingly very well off new client. It looks for all the world like a hate crime, but Carmel is in for another blow when her younger sister dies in a tragic plane crash and Carmel's world starts to fall in on her.

Left as the remaining sister of five siblings, her Catholic brothers do not approve of Carmel. Her brothers - priest Felix a moralising pompous man, and outwardly respectable barrister Jonathon, prone to angry outbursts, have never approved of their sisters, and it was never destined to go well when an unexpected windfall further complicates the mess that the family has found itself in. Not helped by the return of Carmel's abusive ex-husband, and a mentally unstable nephew.

All of which might sound a bit complicated, but Shieff handles the multiple threads in this story with considerable aplomb. Her settings, rich with details of Auckland's history, illustrated by the fashions and customs of the time create an environment in which her characters exist, and rub up against each other.

Shieff has built a tricky world for these people - one in which prostitution is illegal, homosexuality is frowned upon and foreigners have a complicated path in society. Whilst the story flows in and around Rita, Istvan and Carmel, the supporting cast are strong. In particular, the central investigating cop, Allan Maynard is professional and determined to solve the case - he, along with others, are not as antagonistic to the lifestyles of the central characters as the family.

The plot centres on the murder investigation, and the fear that comes from not knowing whether she's next, leaving Carmel worried for her life. Istvan and Rita are there for her, in their own ways, making the relationship between these three "outsiders" touching and quite moving.

This series has a number of compelling elements to it, and THE FINAL CALL echoes them strongly. The depth of the characters and the complexity of their lives, reactions and interactions. The realistic and utterly believable setting - both physical and societal is vividly drawn, as is the sense of a time and history of a place, and the people who inhabit it.

I finished THE FINAL CALL a while ago, and it's been in my mind ever since. I have to admit I love these characters and admire them, and these books, very much.

https://www.austcrimefiction.org/review/final-call-jen-shieff… (altro)

It should come as no surprise that THE VANISHING ACT was a contender in the 2019 Ngaio Marsh Awards, it's a stylish, unusual and most engaging novel. Set in 1960s New Zealand, the land that is now the beacon of so much positive social change, it's a subtle reminder that countries can change for the better. In 1960s New Zealand, society wasn't ready for out and out lesbians, and seemed happy to cover up for all sorts of male misdeeds, including that of two particularly revolting, white, powerful men.

Employing the style and structure of a good old fashioned who-dunnit novel worked particularly well for THE VANISHING ACT. The method sits comfortably within the time period, and it provides a great device for the hero of the piece, Rosemary Cawley, to function within. A woman well used to hiding her sexual preference, and relationship, she's in the perfect position to conduct a low-key, but extremely determined, investigation into the blackmailing and sexual exploitation activities of Doctor George Abercrombie and his friends.

Nicely subtle, the avenging Miss Cawley is a mightily, yet politely, pissed off woman who is not going to take any underhanded crap from the likes of Abercrombie and his mates. Although once the doctor is found murdered, the official investigation, conducted by Inspector Allan Maynard quickly shows that there are plenty more people with reasons to want Doctor Abercrombie gone from this world, and precious few that would like him to have remained.

It did seem to take an age for THE VANISHING ACT to get much forward momentum in the plot, although to be fair, the setup does provide a lot of information about the setting, both in terms of the time, and the attitude towards lesbian relationships in particular. There is also a hefty dose of "men bad" scenarios that might seem a little heavy-handed at first, but then, in this case, most of the male characters (Inspector Maynard aside) are a very unpleasant bunch.

The thing that stays with me the most after reading this novel, however, is the subtle depiction of double standards at play - on the one hand, women's relationships are bad and society must impose rules; on the other hand, any amount of male philandering, financial impropriety, sexual misdeeds, blackmailing and bullying can be ignored.

THE VANISHING ACT is one of those cleverly balanced message novels, that never lurches into preachy territory, using great characters as a way of letting the reader see the unfairness of a situation rather than have it shouted at them every step of the way.

https://www.austcrimefiction.org/review/vanishing-act-jen-shieff… (altro)