Strong start to this murder mystery. It reads like a film noir - there's a dark, brooding protagonist/detective who has just been ousted from his inspector position on the police force and is hired by a wealthy widow whose wife died under suspicious circumstances. The writing is clipped, direct and fast-paced (you can almost hear this as a voiceover in an old movie). The fact that all the characters are LGBTQ (in the 1950s no less) adds a layer beyond a typical murder mystery. I'm intrigued to find out what happens!