Pool of Deceit

Pool of Deceit. An Inspector Fortnam Mystery. By John Kemp Murder is on the menu ... And if you have an appetite and a taste for an intriguing murder puzzle - then try sampling the Inspector Fortnam mystery, Pool of Deceit. As Alistair Fortnam imparts. 'Finding out if someone is telling a lie is only part of the equation, some might say, the easy part. The difficult part is finding out why they are lying.' Pool of Deceit features Inspector Fortnam of New Scotland Yard, a brilliant detective who has extensive training in Behavioural Sciences. He has had a gilded upbringing, a car-wreck of a marriage (now many miles behind him) - and an upward-moving career. We find him in Florida on assignment and leading an investigation into a sudden death at the Blue Heron hotel, on Anna Maria Island. Diane Lewis, a top sales manager for a pharmaceutical company dies after eating a calorie-loaded hamburger at the hotel's swimming pool. Although, it was not cholesterol, induced heart attack that killed her, but poisoning of a kind. It turns out, she was hyper-allergic to peanuts and unfortunately, her allergy medication was missing. Oh, and something for Fortnam to ponder ... there were no peanut extracts contained in the menu's ingredients ... only traces of them in her stomach. Strangers and work colleagues alike shared the poolside with the unsuspecting victim. As Fortnam interviews the thirteen suspects, the investigation quickly becomes indigestible to him as well. Interestingly, some witnesses have quite different motives as why they may have wished Diane Lewis harm. Although, identifying their secrets and the guilty party is as tricky as untangling an old set of Christmas lights in a dark attic. Fortnam attempts to sort it all out, and make the right connections ...