A Mintaur Murder Mystery

A Minotaur Murder Mystery

Bruce Von Stiers

I've probably mentioned this before. Barbara Nickless has become one of my all-time favorite mystery thriller authors. Her series featuring railroad cop, Sydney Rose Parnell, was fantastic. While not exactly leaving that series behind, Barbara has embarked on a new series. This series features forensic semiotician Evan Wilding and Chicago P.D. detective Addie Bissett. I reviewed, as was enthralled by, the first two books in this new series, At First Light and Dark of Night.

Now there is a new book in the Wilding - Bissett series. The title of this new book is Play of Shadows. It is being published by Thomas & Mercer, an Amazon imprint.

The book opens with the disappearance of a young boy. Then ten years later, there is yet another disappearance. This time it's a young woman. And somehow, she is tied to a gruesome murder.

Evan Wilding is a noted scientist and professor at a Chicago university. He has a unique ability to interpret symbols and signs. His assistance to the Chicago police has become invaluable to detective Addie Bissett. Somewhere along the way Evan and Addie became best friends. And maybe more.

A stormy night finds a mysterious figure delivering a package to Evan's doorstep. Moments later, his brother, River, shows up. River is an archaeologist and adventurer, somewhat in the modern vein of Indiana Jones. The package contains a cryptic note and an ancient coin. Together, Evan and River will try to decipher the note and why it was addressed to both of them. Especially as River hadn't been expected to be in Chicago.

At the same time as the package's appearance, Addie is called to a crime scene. A man has been almost literally cut in half. And there are some strange signs marked on and under the body. Addie calls Evan to the scene to help interpret the signs.

Everything about the case, and Evan's note, seem to revolve around the myth of the Minotaur. There is a national theatrical production of a play involving a minotaur that is being performed in Chicago. There is a shadowy figure who appears around the crime scene. There are people that, somehow, are bits of the puzzle that Evan has to solve in order to help Addie solve the murder. There is a ballerina, actors in the production, both local and from the national touring company, and a scientist who has done extensive studies on whether people at birth are good or evil.

Thrown into the mix are labyrinths that have a large role at the end of the book. Labyrinths are intricate to the Minotaur mythos. As murder and mayhem ensue, there is a possible romance brewing between River and Evan's graduate assistant Diana. And as noted in the earlier books in this series, Evan is pining away for Addie, but doesn't dare take it to the next level in fear of ruining their friendship. But that could possibly change the case progresses.

Play of Shadows has a lot of different plot elements that fit together well. There is the family dynamic of Evan and River that is complicated by the appearance of their errant father. There is the case, which somehow is grounded in the myth of the Minotaur. There is the gruesome murder itself, which could be tied to a serial killer. And the illusive killer, who might be a group of people not just an individual. Then the added plot element of good or evil at birth brings a distinct thriller aspect to the novel.

Barbara Nickless has once again written a superb mystery thriller. Play of Shadow melds mythology, psychosis, history, mayhem, and murder to bring forth a fantastic novel.

Play of Shadows is set to be released on November 14, 2023. It is available for pre-order from Amazon.

If you would like to learn more about Play of Shadows and it's author, Barbara Nickless, visit her official website at https://barbaranickless.com/

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