"Keep love in your heart. A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead." Oscar Wilde

I picked up this novel that had been on my shelf for ages and found it to be entertaining, just the kind of book that the mystery fan might enjoy reading during vacation.

Desmond Winter's wife, Connie,  has been missing for six years. She left a note that she was leaving for a while but would be back and to give her time.

He wants to honor that but he recently had an issue with his heart and Connie is the beneficiary of his estate. If he died and she was missing, it would leave his two children in a complicated legal position.

Brady Coyne had made inquiries into Connie's disappearance without success. Now he's called again because someone killed Des's son, Marcus's wife, Maggie. Marcus had spent time in jail for drugs and he assumes he'll be a suspect.

Brady tries to help his friend and find what happened.  However, the local police are aloof from any interference by Brady. Marc isn't much help. He's eccentric and doesn't let anything bother him. He tells Brady that he and his wife had an agreement that they could each do their own thing and on the night she was killed, Marc was with a married woman but doesn't want to tell the police because the woman's husband is abusive.

The setting is New England. The town Newburyport, sounds like Newport and has a vacation view with summer tourists and boat docks. Brady is an enjoyable character, as an attorney, he keeps a store of alcohol at his desk so he can enjoy a drink when he wants, he's also a fishing fan and likes to trade jokes with his buddies.  However, he is like a bulldog and keeps looking for answers until he finds them.

William G. Tapply does a credible job in making the novel realistic and there are a number of surprises that add to the enjoyment of this novel.