Cochran’s cozy mystery revisits a 20-year-old case concerning the mysterious disappearance of three men who lived in an old mansion.

In the northeastern town of Stillwell sits a mansion built in the late 19th century and purchased by health-products guru Asa Marlowe in the 1940s. After Asa’s death, his impressive fortune, including the mansion, was inherited by his son, Asa Marlowe II, commonly called Junior. In time, Junior also had a son, Asa Marlowe III, called Three. Junior and Three lived in the mansion with their wives, Eunice and Carmela. Then there was Roscoe Savini and his wife, Felicia; town gossip holds that Roscoe was Junior’s illegitimate son, born around the same time as Three. Two decades ago, all three men disappeared. In the present, Eunice, Carmela, and Felicia live in the mansion. Retired Stillwell PD detective Harvey Hawkshaw is watching television when he sees a news report on the 20th anniversary of the disappearance—it had been Harvey’s case, the one that still haunts him (“‘Same as it was 20 years ago, Fluffy,’” he says to his cat. “‘I thought those biddies did it, but I couldn’t crack that case. Cold then and cold now’”). A $150,000 reward is offered for solving the mystery. Two young boys digging around on the Marlow property discover a long-buried body. Could this be one of the missing men? It’s time for Harvey to put his detective’s cap back on. Hanging out at his go-to diner, Harvey runs into a fast-talking jokester who goes by the name Flywheel. Harvey takes Flywheel on as his investigative trainee—Cochran has created the genre’s newest delightful odd-couple detective duo. This is a romp of an investigative procedural, low on action and tension, that mixes a bit of slapstick comedy with a heavy dose of jovial, sometimes silly, sometimes clever, repartee. With a cadre of quirky supporting characters and a plethora of decadeslong secrets waiting to be exposed, the narrative amuses and intrigues. There are enough twists to keep readers scratching their heads, and Harvey and Flywheel develop into enjoyable, fully fledged characters that appear likely to helm a sequel.

An entertaining, quick beach read with memorable mismatched sleuths.