A Queer Kind of Love: A Pharoah Love Mystery

From BooklistA tight plot, welldeveloped characters, and sharp, dry wit make this one of gay literature s best mysteries. Black NYPD detective Pharoah Love here mixes it up with a madam, the Mafia, and an aging, rich New York widow who s the mother of himwhodoneit. The caper kicks off when openly gay Pharoah is teamed with homophobic Albert West to solve a series of murders involving the Mafia, two young twins, and a Catskills hotel. The relationshiprealistically as well as amusingly portrayedand the banter between outrageous Pharoah and unassuming, laidback West are what make the book a real pageturner, as Baxt has West play the traditional straight man (so to speak) to Pharoah s inyourfaceness. Those seeking a fun read will welcome this latest of Baxt s comic mysteries and will probably wax enthusiastic for his earlier books, which include his celebrity murder series (e.g., The Mae West Murder Case ) as well as the other Pharoah Loves. Charles HarmonProduct DescriptionPharoah Love, New York s extroverted, gay black detective, returns to duty, only to find himself again in trouble as he investigates a series of killings aimed at members of the Capesi crime family. By the author of A Queer Kind of Death.From Publishers WeeklyPharoah Love, Baxt s irrepressible gay African American detective, returns for his fourth outing, in which quirky characters and wry patter outshine a somewhat tepid mystery. Baxt opens with a bangliterallyas Pharoah is forced to gun down a childhood pal in a rousing, and oddly touching, New York City rooftop shootout. Unfortunately, the subsequent action (or lack thereof) never matches this finely wrought set piece. Pharoah remains endearingly outrageous; and his gay sensibilities, while never forced, form an integral aspect of his character. But the plot meanders with little urgency, as Pharoah attempts to discover who s systematically offing mob members in twosa device perhaps linked to the recent murder of twin Mafia girlfriends. Though this work evinces greater panache than Baxt s Hollywood celebrity murder series, readers will find few surprises and prose that occasionally strains for effect. Still, Pharoah furnishes fun, as he has before in Swing Low, Sweet Harriet and Topsy and Evil.Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.From Library JournalAlthough series protagonist Pharoah Love works for the NYPD, few of his actions reflect the association. Black, gay, ponytailed, and handsome, Love associates easily with all sorts of minority figures, including madams and Mafioso. He begins by searching for someone who has been killing off pairs of friend Marco Salino s lieutenants; six men have died so far. Baxt advances the plot mostly through dialog, with various colorful characters adding interest. Despite some flat humor, Pharoah, cohorts, and context carry the day. A good selection for most libraries.Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.From Kirkus ReviewsBaxt, who s kept busy in recent years with his Hollywood historicals (The Mae West Murder Case, 1993, etc.), now offers a blast from the past: the first case for gay, black, hiphop cop Pharoah Love since Topsy and Evil (1968). Somebody s been icing the soldiers of Pharoah s old friend Marco Salinoone of the Three Musketeers from Pharoah s childhood daysand since Pharoah, the second Musketeer, has just shot the third, Herbie Marks, he feels a special responsibility to clear up the case. Pharoah s scenes with a revolving revue of zanies, from Pharoah s favorite madam, Rita Genari, to her prize whore, Gino Vinelli, to pneumatic nightclub singer Natalya Orloffyou can hardly call their conversations detective worksuggests that the executions are somebody s idea of revenge for the rape/beating/murder of the Cicci twins, nafs who performed at Marco s Capri Hotel up in the Catskills and then gave an encore for the soldiers. But whose idea? Demotic and flamboyant as ever, though Jerome Charyn long