I may need to re read the wrestling story, as I hadn’t realized it was the dowager case. But it is a neat reveal and I like the idea of Lottie having this rich old benefactor who uses her wealth for good means while still lounging around with corgies. Though i’m also waiting this whole arc for the tense shoe to drop: when is this going to connect back to Wicked Things?

I am glad that bit of continuity is being cleared up, but i’m also glad this.. ended up being the book instead. Wicked things was a fine cozy mystery and max sarin, as always, was fantastic on art. I do miss having a john allison ongoing to follow every month and i’m dismayed boom and dark horse both failed to see what they had.. but Solver is just better, combining the tried and trued formula from the old scary go round days of “A sad man in a rut in his life, an energetic busybody and their slightly more worldly friend friend (about the only thing Amy and Clarie seem to share in common but hey) solve stuff” with the polish John’s gained as he’s went and the great characters Lottie and Claire were already. It just hits in the same way the best of scary go round, bad machinery, and especially giant days hit, while still being something fresh and exciting about “what do you do when the future you assumed you’d have is gone and your left twisting in the wind”.

Lottie is still in an unstable state having a new buisness venture but no real plans beyond “Do what I do best in a way that gets me not framed for murder this time” but in her aimlessness is helping others find their way as John’s pointed out: Getting Glem out of careers, Claire out of a major she neve rwanted and Dean back on the dating scene and into her weird team as their guy in the chair. The Oracle to their Birds of Prey but sweatier and more condescending.

Solver feels like it reinergized john and his love of his own shared unvierse: While he wasn’t shy about adding steeple to it, it’s clear he needed that slight distance it provided to figure out , ironically enough what he wanted to do next with Lottie and the result.. just makes me happy.