Ibiza Surprise by Dorothy Dunnett

Dorothy Dunnett is famous for her historical novels, but she also wrote humorous crime stories known as the Dolly series. Dolly is a luxurious private yacht owned by Johnson Johnson, a renowned portrait painter and part time secret agent. Each of the Dolly novels has a different strong female narrator who is investigating a murder. Johnson Johnson and his crew support their protagonist with backup and protection while they solve the mystery. Together they sail to intriguing international destinations, which Dunnett describes brilliantly, and meet eccentric and colourful characters.

So far I have read Tropical Issue, Rum Affair and most recently Ibiza Surprise. I love all of them, but Ibiza Surprise has a special charm. Sarah Cassells has recently left a girls’ public school, which sounds rather like St. Trinian’s, and completed her training as a cook. She has begun to earn her living by catering private parties in English country houses when news of her father’s death reaches her. Posh but penniless Lord Forsey apparently committed suicide in an Ibiza boatyard. Suspecting foul play, Sarah travels to Ibiza to investigate. There she stays with the wealthy family of a school friend and earns her keep by serving up haute cuisine. Johnson Johnson shows up at a crucial moment and they form an alliance, although Sarah is not impressed by his bifocal glasses and tweedy outfits.

Ibiza Surprise has a suspenseful plot and is packed with wit and fun, but it is also interesting because it depicts the late 60s and early 70s, which was a crucial period in the history of Western women. Birth control pills had been available for a few years, and women’s liberation and free love were buzz words, but social atttitudes to women had hardly changed since Victorian times. In Ibiza an ancient civilization was beginning to be overwhelmed by the party culture we know today. Follow Sarah as she goes to wild parties, fends off boys without trust funds and shops for local produce in the street food markets of old Ibiza town.

Many thanks to Farrago books for giving me copies of the Dolly series in return for honest reviews.