Two Time (2006)

Sam Acquillo, the misanthropic hero of Chris Knopf's second Southampton-set mystery, Two Time, has few goals in life — most of which revolve around working on his deck and guzzling gourmet coffee. But after witnessing (and barely surviving) the car-bomb death of a wealthy financial consultant, the 53-year-old ex-engineer is reluctantly roped into uncovering the fire-happy culprit's identity. Although Knopf, himself a long-time resident of New York's Long Island, adeptly works in sly jabs at the affluent culture and barely veiled class conflicts of his sleepy environs, his narrative pacing moves at an equally soporific rate. Not even a twisty ending can jolt awake this drawn-out snoozer of a mystery.