The Body in the Record Room
by Joe Barone
St. Martin’s Minotaur, October 2008, $24.95
The inmates are truly running the asylum in this debut mystery set in the 1950s in a time when mental institutions were largely self-sustaining. One thousand acres of farmland surround the facility where a patient who believes he’s Roy Rogers. Roy, along with his sidekick Harry, and his dog Bullet, dig deep into the murder of a man found slain in the titular record room. What they discover connects to an unsolved killing that occurred 20 years ago in a nearby church. Their winding investigation visits many facets of the 2,000-patient institution—from sacred to secular. It also raises passions among local townspeople who are none too happy to have the institution in their midst.
With a lot of help from his friends, Roy uncovers clues that lead to the solution of both murders. The author draws on an intimate knowledge of these large mental institutions, which have largely now disappeared, from when he was raised on the grounds of one where his father served as superintendent. That background serves both him and his reader well, while introducing characters who would be a welcome return in any future outings.
