Book Review: Gone, but Not Forgotten

Reviewed By: Pat Reid - RAM

Gone, but Not Forgotten     Amazon US PB Amazon Canada PB
Phillip Margolin
Class/Genre:   Mystery
Bantam Books, 1994, 404 pps.

Women are disappearing in Portland. The police are baffled. The only thing left behind is a black rose and a note saying Gone, but not Forgotten. Portland’s District Attorney, Alan Page, suddenly has a surprise visitor. He opens his door to find a strange woman who identifies herself as Nancy Gordon, police detective, in Hunter’s Point. Hunter’s Point is clear across the county from Portland but Nancy heard of the disappearances. She immediately knew who was responsible and flew to Portland to prove it.

The same type of disappearances occurred in Harper’s Point and Nancy knew that Peter Lake had committed the crimes. Another person was named as the murderer but Nancy didn’t buy into that story. The fact that he got away has haunted her for ten years. Page listens to Nancy and is convinced that her story is true.

Page arrests Martin Darius a prominent Portland citizen after checking out the fingerprint card left with him by Nancy Gordon. The fingerprints prove that Darius is one and the same as Peter Lake, a prominent attorney in Hunter’s Point and Nancy’s suspect in the Black Rose murders. Darius hires Betsy Tannenbaum to defend him. Betsy has been making a name for herself as a defense attorney in Portland and Darius feels he has hired the best.

But Page soon finds he is up against the wall. Nancy Gordon has disappeared. He has no one to back him up when the bail hearing comes up. Still you think you have the story pretty well figured out but just when you think you know what is going to happen next the author takes you in a different direction.

This is an excellent mystery that will keep you on the edge of your chair until you know the entire story and that won’t be until you’ve read the last page. I highly recommend this book.

Pat Reid - RAM

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Pat Reid - RAM