The Perfidious Parrot Review
The Perfidious Parrotby Janwillem Van De Wetering
SoHo Press, Oct., 1997.
Hardcover, 288 pages.
ISBN: 1569471029.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
In this 14th entry into the Amsterdam Cops Series the notorious pair
of detectives Grijpstra and de Gier and their former superior officer
the Commissaris have retired from the police force after finding a
secret cache of dollars hidden by some long-gone and not-missed drug
dealers. Operating a detective agency merely as a front to explain
their increased income to the tax authorities, they while away the
days in idleness until one day a mysterious father and son team
arrive on their doorstep and demand that Grijpstra and de Gier
investigate the highjacking of their supertanker in the Dutch
Caribbean. Uninterested in exerting themselves, the pair declines
the offer in order to continue their leisurely pursuit of retirement
until their unwanted clients resort to blackmail and scare tactics
to force G & G, Inc. to take the case. De Grijpstra, de Gier and the
Commissaris set off on a journey to find the pirates of the
supertanker following a dangerous trail that will take them
from the strip clubs of Key West to the islands of St. Eustatius
and Aruba. The unwilling detective team finds more than it bargained
for, however. Not only do they discover a heinous plot involving
piracy and murder, but they also discover something they thought
they had lost: a conscience.
Written in van de Wetering's inimitable style, The Perfidious Parrot is a glorious romp through the tropics which dips into the murky waters of Zen philosophy and the exploration of conscience. Satirical, dry, and oftentimes hilarious, the adventures of the two ex-cops and their mentor and money-manager the Commissaris is a welcome respite from the normal, everyday world. Indulge and Enjoy.
Return to the January 1998 issue of The IWJ.
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