A Waltz on the Wild Side

A missing-person case animates Ridley’s raucous and somewhat overcrowded sixth Wild Wynchesters Regency (after Hot Earl Summer). Aspiring playwright Vivian Henry, 28, devotes much of her life to looking after her idealistic 18-year-old cousin, Quentin, the illegitimate, mixed-race son of a nobleman. Quentin idolizes the Wynchesters, a famed adoptive family of “do-good scoundrels” with a hodgepodge of extraordinary talents, while Viv, an immigrant from Demerara (present-day Guyana), where she was enslaved, resents the Wynchesters’ privilege and apparent disregard for the consequences of their heroics. When Quentin goes missing, however, Viv turns to the Wynchesters to track him down—and feels immediately drawn to “insufferably handsome” Jacob, an animal handler and a pseudonymous poet. He’s eager to help, but a frustrating lack of follow-up questions during the initial meeting leads to miscommunication and a mid-book revelation that feels obvious from the jump. Meanwhile, Viv and Jacob are in lust at first sight, and it’s fun, if somewhat dizzying, to watch as Viv’s case dovetails with several other zany crimes the Wynchesters are looking into. Underneath the chaotic hijinks runs a current of thoughtful social commentary as Ridley emphasizes how her Black leads’ contrasting life experiences have given rise to differing relationships to power and oppression. Despite some hiccups this time out, Ridley remains very good at what she does. (Aug.)