A tense thriller from a new small press, with at least three strong suspects in a string of vicious murders on Fire Island. Scientist Marty Goodman and her subject, a signing chimpanzee named Jinks, arrive to visit her old boyfriend and his family. It's clear from the beginning (to the reader), that the murderer has spent time in Africa, and this describes Marty, Jinks, and a reclusive island resident with a possibly violent past. Some of the characters are a bit stock, but there are surprises and turns of events which keep the reader immersed. The murders are particularly nasty, and local assumption is that the chimp is guilty, while the researcher and her old boyfriend defend him. From the reader's perspective the evidence wavers back and forth until almost the last page, making for a page-turner. ( )