Tuesday, June 19, 2012

"darkness cannot drown out darkness...only light can. Hate cannot drown out hate, only love can." Martin Luther King, Jr.


In Aberdeen, Scotland, when one of the police officers working under  Det. Logan MacRae is critically shot in a botched raid. MacRae is assigned to the 'Screw Up Squad.' He had success in past cases and has been praised in the media for it. However, one chief inspector has taken a dislike to him and will do anything to ruin MacRae's career.

MacRae is assigned to work under Det. Inspector Steele, a wise cracking, heavy smoking woman who must have some information about the chief inspector because she doesn't take any criticism from him. Now Steele and Logan work together and their top priority is apprehending the person who is killing prostitutes.

There is another supervisor who Logan is helping in hope of being reassigned. The main case that this supervisor is working on involves a series of arson fires resulting in deaths.

As a character, Logan has compassion for the prostitutes and tries to help them. In particular, he's moved by a young Lithuanian girl named Kylie.

The novel succeeds with excellent dialogue, a humorous banter that is necessary for police authorities to relieve the horror of what they have to deal with, burned bodies and dismembered corpses.

I enjoyed reading about MacRae, he's a good protagonist who isn't perfect. He's somewhat rambunctious and, at times,  acts without realizing the implications of his actions. Yet, he's respected by the officers who work under his command and he's a successful criminal investigator - a regular cop who hates the politics that accompany his job.

An entertaining read.

Currently Reading

Currently Reading
Broken Promise