Having read most of Ross Macdonald's wonderfully written noir novels and it being a matter of record that his wife, Margaret Millar, was a major influence on Macdonald's writing style, particularly when it came to dialogue, I was interested in reading some of her own crime mysteries. I wasn't disappointed. Millar's dialogue is every bit as sharp and entertaining as that of her husband's, yet distinctively her own.

Mermaid is an interesting crime mystery in that there are no bad guys in it, only bad luck. I look forward to reading the rest of her work, especially now that I've nearly run out of Macdonald. ( )