Quant is back! It’s been nearly 15 years since Russell Quant, the private detective created by Canadian author Anthony Bidulka last appeared on the page. That was in Dos Equis, which had an Oceans 11 vibe to it, though Russell was still catching criminals, not doing crimes. Now, after a long hiatus, the queer Saskatchewan investigator returns.
You may well wonder if it is possible to recapture the spirit of a series after so many years. When Crime Fiction Lover interviewed Bidulka earlier this month, he shared that he was able to return to the voice of Russell on the first page. It is reassuring to see the cover of QUANT describe Russell as, “The first and only wine-swilling, wise-cracking, world-travelling, ex-cop, ex-farm boy, gay, Canadian prairies private eye.”
The book opens with an emotional moment at the family farm in rural Saskatchewan. Russell is doing a walk through of his mother’s home. He is flooded with memories of happier times and slightly overwhelmed by the number of things his mother has accumulated over the years. Kay has developed dementia and it is no longer safe for her to live alone in the country. She has reluctantly agreed to relocate to the city but only for the winter.
Kay might be confused but she is aware that her best friend CeeCee Toth can’t accept that her husband’s death was a suicide. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police believe that Clem Toth vandalised a competitor’s greenhouses and then felt so guilty that he killed himself. They view a typed text that he sent CeeCee as an admission of guilt.
It’s an unlikely story for those who knew Clem, and the problem with their theory is that he never sent typed texts. He always used the voice-to-text message function.
Russell agrees to investigate Clem’s death. Suggestions that the family with the wrecked greenhouses had turned down a previous offer to purchase their land leads Russell to the Sandcastle Corporation. When his investigation hits a roadblock, Russell decides to head down to the Turks and Caicos Islands to meet face to face with the head of the company.
You can hear Anthony Bidulka reading from QUANT in this video.
Russell’s arrival in T&C gets off to a rough start. Fortunately, his friend Sereena has a property there. She is more than willing to use her wealth and status to set up a meeting between Russell and Phillip Painchaud. Relationships and the support of friends are an important element in Bidulka’s books. Themes around family and found family appear often.
JP, Russell’s partner and husband is not actively involved in this case. Instead, he provides support from afar. JP is working on a case in Vancouver. Readers of Bidulka’s Merry Bell series will appreciate an Easter Egg here in the form of a case that links the two series. Merry is a trans private investigator. Bidulka has always used his books to feature people who are under-represented in crime fiction.
He also weaves social commentary into his books. For example, you will get a better appreciation of the struggles faced by farmers on the prairies. One bad season or the loss of one crop can lead to bankruptcy. Farming is not the simple, idyllic life we sometimes imagine.
Earlier, I wondered if an old series can be revived? After reading QUANT, I would say most definitely. QUANT has the same engaging elements as the previous books in the series – investigations with unusual twists that take place in multiple locations, along with a good dose of humour.
There is one key difference, though. Aging the main character has meant that Bidulka also had to age the secondary characters. The bittersweet plot line about Kay developing dementia is authentic and moving. Bidulka wrote QUANT during his mother’s final year. It is a wonderful homage to mothers in addition to being a fun and clever crime fiction novel.
Also see The Disaster Gay Detective Agency by Lev AC Rosen.
Self-published
Print/Kindle
£5.41
CFL Rating: 5 Stars
