Mrs. Pollifax and the Whirling Dervish

by Dorothy Gilman

Paperback, 1991

Status

Available

Call number

Fic Mystery Gilman

Publication

Fawcett (1991), Mass Market Paperback, 224 pages

Description

All Mrs. Pollifax has to do is help a bumbling CIA agent confirm the identities of seven undercover informants in Morocco. A simple assignment. But right away, things go wrong. The first informant is murdered just after Mrs. P. identifies him in Fez. Worse, she has the frightening sensation that her associate is not who or what he says he is.

User reviews

LibraryThing member LydiaHD

This is my favorite of the later Mrs. Pollifax novels; there are fewer charming young extras, and more concentration on Mrs. Pollifax by herself.

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LibraryThing member Othemts

Dorothy Gilman returns to the formula of the early novels making this book less interesting than the character development that has occurred in the last few books. Mrs. Pollifax seemingly over her torture in Hong Kong is growing bored again and thus delighted to work on a secret CIA side project in

Morocco. Of course things go wrong and Mrs. Pollifax ends up working with the bad guy impostor before being rescued by a precocious child and an Islamic holy man. Mind candy for sure but at least there are some interesting political issues.

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LibraryThing member tjsjohanna

You can see the changing world state in the progression of this series. Here Mrs. Pollifax enters Morocco. I love the way Mrs. Pollifax's instincts and even personality traits stand her in such good stead all the time. This book is reminiscent of her adventures in Turkey and even in Albania - just

how many times has she gone into hiding as a native woman, draped in voluminous robes??

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LibraryThing member clong

I had read and enjoyed several of the books in this series as a teen, and then not revisited Mrs. Pollifax for many years before I re-read the opening book in the series again last year and found it just as entertaining as I had remembered it. So when I spotted Mrs. Pollifax and the Whirling

Dervish on the shelf at the library, I decided that maybe it was time to try another.

I think of these books as cozy mystery meets James Bond, and this one is no different. It is one of the later books in the series; our heroine has picked up a husband and been shaken by trauma in the meantime. The book opens with Mrs. Pollifax, after an extended period without any assignments, worrying that she’s washed up as agent. But opportunity soon knocks, and she is sent off on what is expected to be a short, safe little mission to Morocco. Of course, the assignment quickly turns out otherwise.

Overall I found this book somewhat disappointing. People and factions are very much black and white, and snap judgements unerringly prove correct. Coincidence is consistently called upon as a plot device. None of which keeps me from admitting that the heroine’s ultimate triumph over long odds left me with at least a vague sense of satisfaction. The setting and the depiction of Moroccan history and culture were the most interesting things about the book.

Fans of the series will probably enjoy this book, but I wouldn’t recommend it as an entry point for new readers.

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LibraryThing member nolak

Seven undercover agents are in danger and one of them has been replaced by a deadly imposter. Emily forges ahead alone in Morocco to solve the mystery and save lives.

LibraryThing member justchris

Mrs. Pollifax and the Whirling Dervish takes place in Morocco. This time, her job is to courier photos of informants to the local operative who will verify their identities, since it is clear there is a leak somewhere. But Emily and the local agent do not hit it off. Once again, dead bodies,

prisoners of the bad guys, fugitives, given up as dead, etc. This time there's a little bit of torture for our plucky heroine. And once again she turns out to be the experienced operative giving advice. No marriages that I can think of in this story, but she does facilitate other sorts of connections, in this case between a Sufi holy man and a new disciple. Mr. Mornajay plays a key role in this story, after he appeared for the first time in Mrs. Pollifax and the Golden Triangle.

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LibraryThing member BonnieJune54

I loved the Moroccan setting. I thought it had a nice pace and interesting characters.

LibraryThing member 1coolmima

I wish I could be like Mrs. Pollifax. Brave, silly, caring and an old lady with lots of energy. Fun reading about her and her escapades. Rather ask for forgiveness than ask for permission...my kind of woman.

LibraryThing member Olivermagnus

This spirited mystery featuring part-time secret agent Emily Pollifax shows the kindly grandmother at her resourceful best. Her superiors in the Atlas Group (an unofficial branch of the CIA) have dispatched Emily to Morocco to provide a cover for another of their agents, Max Janko. Emily will pose

as Max's aunt to make the pair look like tourists, while in reality they will be trying to identify all seven agents in order to ferret out the mole who has recently infiltrated the Atlas network. Emily is bewildered when she finds Janko not only insufferably hostile and that he intends to kill her. Before long, a murder has occurred, and Emily and her inexperienced companion are running for their lives from one village to the next, desperately trying to find the informer and save the rest of the network.

Mrs Pollifax is humorous , adventurous, curious, daring, and unpredictable. I love these books as a quick light read when I want to see some of the world and be entertained at the same time.

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LibraryThing member aplaine

This 9th book in the series lives up to all expectations. Mrs. Pollifax is a great role model for seniors!

LibraryThing member jetangen4571

North Africa, Western Sahara, espionage, betrayal, thriller, suspense, reread, friendship*****

Written in 1990. The publisher's blurb is a good hook for those of us who are addicted to enjoying Mrs Pollifax's adventures as a CIA courier. She is sent to accompany a boorish local agent in Morocco to

verify seven agents because something has gone very wrong. Then it gets worse. But she does meet a Holy man who reassures her with The Whirling Dervish Dance: A Sacred Ritual to Touch the Divine.
Reread via Recorded Books audiobook narrated by Barbara Rosenblat
Award winning voice actor Barbara Rosenblatt always does a wonderful job with all the voices and really acts out the story and not just read it. Her voice brings the characters to life with her inflections entirely suited the situations and characters.

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