No Hiding Place

This engaging treat for mystery fans, the fourth outing for black private eye Tamara Hayle, begins with Hayle getting mugged as she leaves her office one night. She has just $6.50, and her car is a rust-eaten Volkswagen. But the senselessness of the crime troubles her less than the fact that the teenager holding the gun seems familiar. Later, Tamara discovers why: he's the son of Shawn Raymond, the man her police-officer brother mentored years ago. Now Shawn has been murdered and, unsure she is doing the right thing, Tamara tells Shawn's mother she'll try to find the killer. She has no choice: her brother committed suicide years ago, and she understands that it may have affected Shawn as much as it did her.