The Watercress File: Being the Further Adventures of That Man from C.A.M.P by Victor J. Banis

The Watercress File: Being the Further Adventures of That Man from C.A.M.P by Victor J. Banis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Man from CAMP books keep getting better and better. I don't know if I'll be able to say that by the time Jackie is heading to the lost city of Atlantis, but it is definitely true in the first three in the series.

This book starts off slow, with Jackie once again teaming with a hot homophobic cop. I really am not reading these books to see homophobia, but considering it was written in 1967, four years after a US based publisher got 25 years in jail for publishing similar material, I suppose I have to let it pass.

The story picks up once Jackie gets to his Aunt's house and sees his whole wacky mischievous family. This colourful cast of characters really picks up the book, particularly when they decide to form a secret agent subsection to help with the case. Little old ladies solving crimes and staking out whore houses in comedy gold and the author plays it well.

Once again the story heats slowly building to a dramatic, over-the-top finish but I like that the author left some comedy in toward the end, too often in the past books the action gets ramped up to Schwarzenegger levels and it's a bit much. It's still a little crazy but more restrained here, less wild shootouts and explosions and car chases.

I look forward to Jackie's Aunt coming back in the series and am excited to see where the books head.

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