 Cape Weathers Mysteries: Book 5
Publication Date: November 14, 2023
It was supposed to be a simple job: steal the paintings, leave the forgeries…
When a helicopter crashes through the skylight of the Asian Art Museum, an audacious heist turns into a tragedy. The only witness to the crash is eleven-year-old Grace, who watches in horror as her uncle is killed and a priceless statue stolen by two men and a—ghost? At least that’s how the eerie, smoke-like figure with parchment skin and floating hair appears to Grace. Scared almost to death, she flees into the night and seeks refuge in the back alleys of San Francisco’s Chinatown.
Grace is found by Sally Mei, self-appointed guardian of Chinatown. While Sally trains Grace in basic survival skills, her erstwhile partner Cape Weathers, private detective and public nuisance, searches for the mysterious crew behind the robbery before they strike the museum a second time. As the clock winds down, Cape enlists aid from some unlikely allies to lay a trap for a ghost who has no intention of being caught—nor of leaving any witnesses alive to tell the tale.
Eleven-year-old Grace knows only one person in San Francisco, and she just saw him get killed by a helicopter crashing into the museum where he worked. As if that’s not enough trauma, she then witnessed three men steal priceless artifacts.
Grace heads for the streets and ends up in Chinatown, where author Tim Maleeny brings in Sally Mei and Cape Weathers for the fifth installment of the Cape Weathers Mysteries series. Hanging the Devil provides edge-of-your-seat action along with some bits of humor.
As someone new to the series, I had no problem jumping in with this installment as a standalone. The character development stands out because not only does young Grace play a pivotal role, but she also receives training from the skilled Sally Mei. Sally’s expertise with weapons gives her a front spot as someone to be reckoned with.
The spotlight, though, shines on Cape Weathers. Not only does he have top-notch investigative skills, but he knows the criminals will try to strike the museum again. As the only witness, Grace will be a key target. Thanks to Cape’s vast network of contacts, he puts together a team.
But how do you fight a ghost? That’s the intriguing element of the story. The team races against time to flush out the bad guys and nab the white figure in the process.
Hanging the Devil sets up a heated conflict featuring rival Chinese gangsters, Russian mobsters, and a young girl on the run who manages to find the one person in town with the connections to help.
TIM MALEENY is the bestselling author of the award-winning Cape Weathers mysteries and the comedic thriller JUMP, which The Boston Globe called “hilarious” and Publishers Weekly described as “a perfectly blended cocktail of escapism.” His short fiction appears in several major anthologies and has won the prestigious Macavity Award for best story of the year. A former resident of San Francisco, Tim currently lives and writes at an undisclosed location in New York City, where he is working on his next novel, a screenplay, and a book for young readers.
