THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, May 14, 1995 TAG: 9505100662
SECTION: COMMENTARY PAGE: J3 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Book Review
SOURCE: BY DOUGLAS G. GREENE
LENGTH: Medium: 70 lines
THE DAUGHTERS OF CAIN
COLIN DEXTER
Crown. 295 pp. $21.
COLIN DEXTER'S Inspector Morse has become an international phenomenon. Novels about him are best sellers in Britain; translations have appeared in many languages; and John Thaw's portrayal of the irascible Oxford copper on PBS' ``Mystery'' and on the A&E cable network has resulted not only in many fans but in the recent publication of a book, The Making of Inspector Morse, devoted solely to the television series.
The Daughters of Cain, the 10th Morse novel, shows all of Dexter's strengths as a writer and Morse's appeal as a human being. Morse drinks too much, breaks too many rules, treats his colleague, the long-suffering Sergeant Lewis, with what can only be called affectionate disdain, and develops brilliant theories about the case he is investigating. No matter that Morse's first theories are almost invariably erroneous; they are nonetheless brilliant and should have been correct. Unfazed, Morse produces more theories, just as brilliant and often just as wrong. Only at the conclusion, usually prodded by Lewis' recognition of physical evidence that Morse had overlooked, does he solve the crime. Meanwhile, the case has been full of plot twists, unexpected dead ends and characters who aren't what they seem.
All of Dexter's novels combine the 1930s emphasis on intricate plotting with the current belief that crime should be depicted realistically. His plots are labyrinthine, yet his characters are fully developed and believable, and most believable of all is the relationship between Morse and Lewis.
Dexter once remarked that Inspector Morse is more successful at police work, but Sergeant Lewis is more successful at life. Morse is a bachelor who has never formed a satisfying relationship with a woman. In his cases, he is drawn to women who are murderers or accessories to murder, or who (in one instance) will shortly commit suicide. In The Daughters of Cain, a suspect finds Morse attractive, but he has no talent in handling her interest. Clearly, if grudgingly, Morse envies Lewis' home life with wife and children, and over the years he has come to admire Lewis as a colleague. In an unexpectedly emotional passage, Morse tells Lewis that he is contemplating retirement, but that he will greatly miss Lewis.
The Daughters of Cain, like all of Dexter's books, is intimately concerned with Oxford. Dr. Felix McClure, a retired don, is found murdered in his flat. All of the clues point to Edward Brooks, a former ``scout'' at the university, who may have been dealing drugs to the students. But then Brooks disappears, and Morse must devise a new theory. Brooks, it turns out, has brutalized his wife and sexually abused his daughter. There is much more to the plot, as wheels move within wheels, both in the events and in Morse's mind, but no summary can do justice to the richness of a Dexter mystery novel.
Dexter not only hints that Morse may retire, but he also includes comments about the Inspector's precarious health, as (for the second time in one of the novels) he is hospitalized for the effects of alcohol. All of his fans know, however, that Morse is immortal. It would be a sadder world without the curmudgeonly inspector.
- MEMO: Douglas G. Greene is director of the Institute of Humanities at Old
Dominion University and author of ``John Dickson Carr: The Man Who
Explained Miracles.'' This summer he will teach a course on detective
fiction at the Virginia Beach Higher Education Center. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Colin Dexter by CNB