TOO DARN HOT

Faye Quick is a detective in noir 1940s' New York City, where lots of women do men's work because there's a war on. Faye's secretary, Birdie, is Laura Hicks's masterpiece here, played as a cross between The New Woman and Betty Boop; you can practically hear her chewing gum and buffing her nails. It's all great Runyonesque fun, with feisty Faye a sort of Humphrey Bogart in a sundress. Her client is pretty Claire Turner, whose soldier boyfriend, Charlie, is missing, but his is not the naked dead body Faye finds in Charlie's hotel room. Even if you solve the puzzle before Faye does, Hicks keeps the action sizzling to the end. B.G. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 06/ JAN 07]