Review: Can a book lover be a killer?
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 22, 2012
"An Acceptable Sacrifice" is one of a series of stand-alone mystery stories from MysteriousPress.com in which books, bookstores, libraries, or manuscripts play a central role. The Bibliomysteries are short stories, not full length novels.A joint operation, sanctioned by Mexico City and Washington, D.C., pairs P.Z. Evans with Alejo Diaz, two killers hired to take out Alonso "Cuchillo" Carillo, presumed leader of the Hermosillo Cartel. According to an informant, in two days the cartel will set fire to a bus full of tourists to protest Mexico's war against drugs. Why Cuchillo doesn't pursue the time-honored defense against such wars -- paying off the federales -- is unclear, but the story requires the reader to accept the unlikely premise that blowing up tourists has something to do with the drug trade. A more intriguing question is whether Cuchillo really is a cartel leader, as opposed to a legitimate businessman. As is so often the case, the intelligence pointing to Cuchillo's guilt might be faulty.Since Cuchillo allegedly intends to remain in his compound until the bus is in flames, Evans and Diaz must find a way to gain entrance. Fortunately for them, Cuchillo collects first editions and rare books, a "weakness" that the killers hope to turn to their advantage. On the other hand, Diaz wonders whether such a pleasant book lover could really be a ruthless killer. What if they are assassinating the wrong man? Unfortunately, that question fades into the background as the story advances.Point of view shifts from Evans and Diaz to their employers in D.C. to Cuchillo, giving the reader a variety of perspectives as the relatively simple plot unfolds. "An Acceptable Sacrifice" works because the characters are engaging, the dialog is amusing, the atmosphere is convincing, and the story moves quickly. The story's theme gives Cuchillo a chance to explore the relative merits of literature and crime fiction (not surprisingly, he extols the craftsmanship of popular novelists over the "pretentious artifice" of "so-called literary writers"). A couple of cute twists lead the story to a satisfying resolution. It's a bit disappointing that Jeffery Deaver didn't flesh out the "drug lord versus legitimate businessman" theme in greater depth, but that's my only serious complaint about the story. This isn't great literature (which, I'm sure Deaver agrees, isn't always pretentious, despite the views expressed by Cuchillo), but it is a fun, well-crafted crime story.