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Book Review: Murder Mystery Spotlights St. John

Wilson Roberts (Source file photo)What happens when an enterprising author settles in a tiny sailing outpost like Coral Bay on St. John, Virgin Islands?

Well, he writes about it, of course.

Authors famously see the world as the canvas they create on, and the island of St. John has provided plenty of color for Wilson Roberts.

Roberts, a retired English professor, and his wife Diane began visiting the Caribbean when his cousin lived on Tortola, in the British Virgin Islands, in the 1970’s. They were immediately taken with the lifestyle, the people and the islands’ natural beauty, visiting often and finally building a home on St. John in the mid-eighties. It’s a far cry from their other, chillier home in Greenfield, Mass., where Diane practices law.

Roberts’ natural curiosity led him to explore (or appropriate) his new rather quirky community. And he came up with paydirt.

He has written several previous novels, including "Incident at Tuckerman Court" and "The Serpent and the Hummingbird," which includes a scene set at Skinny Legs Bar and Restaurant in Coral Bay.

His latest is "Murder in Coral Bay: A tale of St. John," which was published March 25. It’s a dandy murder mystery set mainly in a St. John bar, peopled with amalgams of those the author has come to know over the years.

First, take a guy, a doctor from Massachusetts, who find himself rootless after his many-year marriage suddenly goes south. Dr. Robert Palmer heads south, himself, to warmer climes. He winds up on St. John, hired by Skipper Dan to tend bar at Dante’s Landing, a popular hangout at the water’s edge in Coral Bay. Palmer finds the job suits him just fine. He keeps his identity to himself, which is pretty much the norm with the bar’s ex-pats.

Waitress Bethany Wren finds him a place on St. John. Though Bethany is friendly, the doctor senses a more complicated person under the surface. He quickly comes to know his customers, many of whom spend a substantial portion of their life on a Dante barstool. Or, he knows what they are willing to reveal.

First, there’s the woman known as X, who is, of course, gorgeous with a mysterious past. Roberts handles this stereotype well, drawing X out into a three-dimensional character.

Liquid Plummer is an amiable drunk, Teach, not so amiable. He may or may not have taken the name from Edward Teach, better known as Blackbeard the pirate – Teach ain’t saying. There’s also Icebox Bob, who works on refrigeration units when he’s sober enough, Mechanic Mike, same work ethic, Pilgrim Jack who claims his family came over on the Mayflower, which doesn’t jibe with his Texas accent. He lives in a tent with Nutty Betty.

In contrast to these ex-pats, there’s Moonie, a West Indian. He’s a man of many talents, including cooking and construction, but his love is "wildcrafting," harvesting and selling local plants, a talent that comes into play when he turns detective.

Dropping into this pleasant polyglot of personalities come two visitors from a sailboat, one spectacularly obnoxious, the other, his obedient sidekick. The obnoxious one, Bear, makes a play a play for Bethany, but the husky Appalachian girl holds her own.

The same can’t be said for Bear; the next morning he is found propped up outside the bar, a bullet hole in his skull.

Skipper Dan says he’d like to dump the body at sea, but allowed as to how they would likely get caught. He explains to Palmer the local cops’ incompetence and corruption. "There was a proposal a few years back to have the Feds come in and run the Police Department. It came to nothing, but a lot of people thought it was a great idea." Proving his point, the police showed up an hour and a half later, and ask who had shot Bear, to which Liquid Plummer replies, "That’s your job to find out."

Two more murders soon follow. First, Bear’s obedient buddy turns up dead, followed by a bearded drifter in Cruz Bay.

On the romantic front, relationships ebb and flow. At Bethany’s suggestion, Palmer becomes involved with X, even learning her real name! Predictable, yes, but nonetheless it keeps things rolling as a good yarn should.

Palmer, Skipper Dan and Moonie team up to find the killer. The chase leads to all sorts of dire adventures, bringing Moonie’s horticultural expertise and Palmer’s medical background into play.

Roberts writes with a fine ear for dialogue. And he picks up the nuances of life in the odd little hamlet with great care for the characters he creates. His affection for the community informs every page of his tale, which can be purchased online at Amazon by clicking this link.

Roberts dedicated the book to his long-time island buddy who passed away last year.

"To the memory of Peter Whims, singer, builder, outlaw, above all, friend, who loved the Virgin Islands and who gave much joy to the many years we spent there."

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