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"A whimsical mystery"

In Chicago's Grant Park an OZ festival is being held to celebrate the centennial publication of The Wizard of Oz. Frank Baum wrote the book while living in the area and the city wants to honor their celebrity. It promises to be a great event with high tech displays of Oz locales, Oz rides, and food that could have come straight from the fantasy land. Free lance reporter Cat Marsala's brother Barry is in charge of the event so Cat is escorting her nephew Jeremy around the festival until it is time to return him to his father.

When Jeremy and Cat go to meet Barry, a person breaks away from the crowd and rushes over to them. The next thing everybody sees is that individual bleeding to death and Barry holding a knife. Eager to get Jeremy away from the gruesome sight, Cat takes him to a different part of the festival. They have no time to relax because someone starts shooting at them, forcing them to run into the tunnels that lead under the city. The officer makes it clear that Barry is their number one suspect so Cat begins sleuthing, but that leads to her becoming the target of a killer.

Cat Marsala is at the top of her game as she rescues her nephew, tries to clear her brother's name, and finds a major story to sell. Barbara D'Amato does not make her into a superwoman. Instead she is an average female striving to be the best she can be both as a person and as a reporter. Fans of amateur sleuth novels and Oz fans will absolutely love running down this yellow brick road.

Harriet Klausner

Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted June 28, 2001

The Harry Potter of its time, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

and the forty or so other books in the Oz series have

become perennial sellers. There are Oz festivals, Oz fan

clubs, Oz newsletters, and, of course, Oz Web sites and

chat rooms. And now there's Hard Road, a Cat Marsala

mystery in which author Barbara D'Amato shares her own love

of Oz.

D'Amato's father knew Oz author L. Frank Baum and as a

child played with Baum's children. Five generations of

D'Amato's family have been Oz aficionados, including her

novelist son, Brian D'Amato, who in his essay gives us

special insight into Baum's world.

The story begins at a big centennial Oz festival in

Chicago's Grant Park. Investigative reporter Cat Marsala

rediscovers the wonderful world of Oz when she takes her

six-year-old nephew Jeremy to meet Dorothy and the Tin Man

and to explore the Yellow Brick Road, the Emerald City, and

all the other Oz-inspired creations to be found at the

summer festival celebrating a century of Oz books.

It's opening day, and Cat is babysitting her brother

Barry's young son while Barry, a professional events

organizer, confers with dignitaries. But suddenly a day of

pure delight turns into a scene of horror. Cat and Jeremy

witness a murder, and the chief suspect is a man they both

love -- Barry. He can't be the killer, but Cat also can't

deny what she saw with her own eyes.

Cat's first priority is to get Jeremy away from the

devastation. They run to the merry-go-round, but as they

circle on the brightly painted animals, a shot rings out.

Someone is aiming at Cat, or perhaps at the boy. Could

Barry be desperate enough to shoot at his own sister and

child, the only witnesses to the killing?

Desperate to save Jeremy, Cat grabs him and ducks into one

of the tunnels that lead out to Michigan Avenue. As she and

her nephew crawl for their lives, they know they are not in

Kansas anymore. Someone far more evil than the Wicked Witch

is in pursuit, and the magical world of Oz seems very far

away.

Anthony Award-winning author Barbara D'Amato combines a

fine mystery plot with engaging insights into the ongoing

appeal of the Oz books in this memorable addition to her

acclaimed series. For mystery and Oz fans alike, Hard Road

is a special treat.