Beneath the Depths
by Bruce Robert Coffin
Published by Witness Impulse/Harper Collins 2017
Pages 413 Price Paperback  $11.99

The old phrase ”The grass is greener on the other side of the fence” is a common misperception. We often do not realize what we do have is very beautiful. In that spirit, I would like to mention, we do have some wonderful writers creating in Maine.

One of the best mystery writers in the state is Bruce Robert Coffin, whose current book “Beyond the Truth,” (2019) was an Agatha Christie Award Nominee for Best Contemporary Mystery Novel and a finalist in the Maine Literary Award for Best Crime Fiction 2019. I previously reviewed that book but liked it so much I decided to read another book by him. Coffin has written three John Byron mysteries: “Among the Shadows,” “Beneath the Depths,” and “Beyond the Truth.”

This review focuses on his book,“Beneath the Depths,” (2017), which is the second book in a series of mysteries dealing with the lead character John Byron, a Portland Police Department detective. Each story is different, focusing on a crime mystery. You do not have to read the books consecutively.

Why do I like Coffin’s style? You get right into the story. There are surprises on every page.The dialogue is fast, natural,  and realistic. The characters are believable.The location is Maine and includes familiar streets and landmarks.I like Coffin’s style. He makes contemporary mystery writers like James Patterson and Tom Clancy seem slow and contrived.

Perhaps part of Coffin’s successful style comes from his everyday experiences in life as a retired police detective. His colorful dialogue is something he probably has used for over a lifetime in investigating crime scenes in Maine.

In the novel “Beneath the Depths,” John Byron investigates a death on the waterfront in Portland, Maine. Paul Ramsey, a well- known controversial trial attorney, who drank away his sorrow at the Red Fox Bar in Portland after losing a case and not being promoted in a law firm, is found dead in the harbor by a lobsterman.

John Byron and his team are called to investigate the death. Byron as well as other police professionals call the body of Paul Ramsey a “floater,” which is apparently a common description of a dead body found in the harbor.

Byron and his “Girl Friday” Diane, a sharp and liberated lady, have to interview Ramsey’s widow, the bartender at the Red Fox, and other people who might have wanted Paul Ramsey dead. There was a bullet found in his head and bruises found on his body.. So it was not a suicide.

We find out that Ramsey was a colorful lawyer and was not a saint. He used cocaine, had a drinking problem, and had a few women on the side. Therefore the investigation is wide open for many people who might have wanted him dead. In addition, his wallet with money was found in his clothes. It was not a robbery.

Reports of the autopsy showed high levels of liquor, cocaine and fentanyl, a drug 100 times the strength of morphine. Now Byron’s team has to track down Ramsey’s suppliers.

Separate from Byron’s police team also hunting for information is Davis Billingslea, a news reporter, who knows a paralegal in the law firm in which Ramsey had worked. Naturally he finds out some inside information on relations and tensions, associated with Ramsey, going on inside the law firm. He calls Byron to find out more about the case but is ignored because Byron is not talking to the press.

A meeting takes place between the lawyers and Byron at the Newman, Branch, and DeWitt law office. Detective Byron asks  pertinent questions to both Branch and DeWitt and is not intimidated by their responses because he knows the law as well as the lawyers. In fact they are intimidated by him. But Byron leaves with two leads:one, the name of a building contractor who had called Ramsey with multiple threats; and two, the names of Paula and Justin Elwell who Ramsey represented in a malpractice case involving the death of their 17- year- old son and lost the case.

This incredible mystery is as intricate as a finely woven tapestry. Threads are tied together by John Byron and his police team as the loose ends appear to lead to a totally unrecognized figure in the story. The initial D is a clue that leads to a revelation never considered. However, there are many names with D in the book which makes for interesting guessing and lots of suspense.

Familiar locations in the story which make it real for those of us who live in Maine include the following: Commercial Street, State Street,  Kennedy Park, Munjoy Hill, North Street, The Old Port Regency,  Veranda Street near the Martin’s Point Health Center, and the terrific Miss Portland Diner which has gigantic garden salads, great juicy real- beef hot dogs, and the best thick hand- made potato chips in the state.

A significant aspect in the style of the story is the humor in the dialogue. Detective Byron’s humor lifts the story’s pace and gives the action a breather. Byron’s subtle but quick sense of humor adds spice to the dialogue, reveals his inner thoughts, and provides insight into the characters and actions in the story.There are a number of intrigues and little romantic entanglements in the story which are amazing, but the focus always remains on the big mystery of who killed Paul Ramsey.

If you want to find out who killed Ramsey you will have to read the book. I can say this, it is the kind of book you do not want to end. It is going to be hard to find another one as much fun. I could not put it down. I recommend it highly.

***
In Another Time
By Jillian Cantor
Published by Harper Perennial 2019
Pages 319 Price $16.99 Paperback

This is a beautifully written historical novel which explores the after effects of World War II on a gifted violinist and how music helps Hannah Ginsburg survive the Holocaust.

The time period deals with the 1930s in Germany and Hitler’s rise, as well as the after effects in London and Paris and Vienna. It reveals that Hannah’s family didn’t leave Germany even though they were Jewish because they felt they were German, and they loved Germany. They could not believe what was really happening. The characters in this book are fictional but the events around them are historical facts.The author states in an afterword, “The orchestra and unnamed camp that Hannah plays in during the war is fictional but I got the idea based on what I read about the real woman’s orchestra in Auschwitz.”

In the novel Hannah is a child prodigy and gifted violinist. She lives both emotionally and literally to play her violin. The book opens in New York City in the 1950’s where Hannah, after the war, has immigrated to America and lives in a one bedroom apartment in Greenwich Village. Her whole life is centered around rehearsals and playing her violin in an orchestra.

However, many years before she was playing her violin in 1931 at the Lyceum in  Gutenstat, Germany, when Max opened a door to the auditorium by accident. Max had been on his way to an economics lecture but he was mesmerized by the beauty of the  sound of music which Hannah was practicing. She was tiny but had full control of the music. It did not control her. He excused himself and walked across the campus to his economics class but  Hannah’s music haunted him.

Max owned a bookstore which he inherited from his father. He was sorry he had not made a connection with the lovely violinist but when he went back to the auditorium in which she had been practicing, she had gone. Now it was noon and he opened up his shop. To his great surprise, Hannah walked into the bookstore that afternoon. She said,”You left a book this morning.” He introduced himself and said, ”I am Max Beissinger.” Hannah remarks, “Ah, so this is your store.” (A stamp with the name Beissinger’s store had been placed in the book.) She states “I am Hannah Ginsburg.” That is how the story of their love and survival  through the Holocaust begins.

They get separated during the war and Hannah gets sent to different concentration camps. Max is not Jewish. He had tried to hide her but she was found. However, he searches for her all
during the war and never gives up. Survivor’s guilt is not a topic that history books address. However, this novel shows the traumatic impact of survivor’s guilt. That is why historical novels are important. They address feelings of the period as well as the facts.

The book ends in 1958 in New York City in a music  practice room. Someone has come to the door and asks to see her. If you want to find out if it is Max, you will have to read the book. If you like Vivaldi and Bach and the importance of music in all people’s lives, as well as reading about the after effects of the Holocaust, you will like this book. It reveals the importance of freedom in all our lives. I recommend it highly.

— Pat Davidson Reef is a graduate of Emerson College in Boston. She received her Masters Degree at the University of Southern Maine. She taught English and Art History at Catherine McAuley High for many years. She now teaches at the University of Southern Maine in Portland in the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, Classic Films. She recently wrote a children’s book,”Dahlov Ipcar Artist,” and has now completed another children’s book “Bernard Langlais Revisited.”