This book delivers on portraying the myriad personalities, sites and events that make up Provincetown at the start of the season. The quirky characters of the regular summer crowd, the small towniness of the locals, and the summer siege of people who come to work, to be seen, and to watch: Provincetown’s summer blend of creative invention and downright shallowness.

I didn’t find this book to be a real mystery. But it did remind me of a good Irish folktale – many a bizarre twist and turn, each of which is more the point of the story than the conclusion.

P’town regulars will enjoy the comedy club scenes, the season opener party, the town meeting, and the goings-on of Arthur’s “treasure”. But it left me longing for a P’town novel that draws direct from the heart and soul of that wild town by the bay, which is exotic enough in its own right!