(Vestre Prison, Copenhagen, Denmark)

A number of years ago I was browsing in a bookstore in Copenhagen, Denmark when the store manager suggested a Department Q novel written by Jussi Adler-Olsen.  When my wife and I travel I love to buy crime novels written about foreign destinations by local authors.   Adler-Olsen fit the bill and I have read all Department Q novels ever since.  I purchased his latest LOCKED IN when it was published and haphazardly misplaced it.  After watching Matthew Goode’s performance as DCI Carl Morck in Netflix’s new Department Q series I immediately conducted a search of my study and located the novel.  Once read I can honestly state Adler-Olsen has not lost his touch.

Adler-Olsen’s latest takes place during the Covid-19 epidemic as Morck is charged with drug trafficking and murder which threatens to ruin his life and career.  Imprisoned and surviving a number of attacks inside the incarceration facility, Morck’s colleagues at the Copenhagen Police Department, especially Marcus Jacobsen, the Chief of Homicide refuse to provide any assistance, and in fact they make his situation worse.  The only support he receives is from his compatriots in Department Q, Rose Knudsen, Hafez El- Assad, and Gordon Taylor who imperil their own careers to assist him.

Adler-Olsen develops his plot slowly as a drug laden suitcase is found in Morck’s attack.  Its contents were unknown to the Copenhagen detective, and it leads to a thirteen year old convoluted case whereby two of his team partners can offer no help.  One, Anker Hoyer, a corrupt cop who died in 2007 and another, Hardy Henningsen, had been paralyzed by a bullet from the same drug case.  Morck was unaware that Anker, a social climber, was working with a drug cartel which led to suspicions concerning Morck.  The author creates a unique way that the Dutch/Danish drug cartel permanently removes those who were not loyal – using a nail gun to their skulls, hence the name “nail gun cases” that Morck is implicated with.

(Slagelse Remand Center, Copenhagen, Denmark)

Once arrested and taken to Vestre prison, Morck and his wife Mona are shocked to learn as a police officer he was not placed in protective custody, particularly because over the years Morck was responsible for placing a number of Vestre inmates in cells.  Adler-Olsen has created a complex story involving police corruption and the attendant failure of human nature when it comes to earning a “little extra money.”  A key character is Eddie Jansen, a Rotterdam police detective who was on the take for years and now his “bosses” want him to arrange Morck’s murder inside the prison.  Once he fails to accomplish his task, Eddie is on the run with his family because the drug cartel “does not suffer fools gladly.”

Adler-Olsen excels at introducing his characters in detail, highlighting their motivations and actions.  One such character is Malthe Bogegard, a drug enforcer who is imprisoned with Morck.  He has a brother who is facing death from a rare disease.  No doctor in Holland can save him, however there is an experimental operation that can be performed in a German hospital which might save him.  The catch is money.  When a large fee is offered by the drug cartel to kill Morck, Malthe believes his problem is solved.  Another is Merete Lynggard who years earlier, Morck rescued her from imminent death after she was kidnapped.  To repay her savior, she turns up visiting Morck’s wife Mona and offers her assistance.  She is fully recovered from her ordeal and owns a security company with many inside contacts and resources.  Lastly, Detective Bente Hansen who created her own drug business as a side hustle within her department.

(Matthew Goode as DCI Carl Morck in ‘Dept. Q’)

The author does an excellent job describing prison life – which prisoners ruled, the corrupt guards and administrators, and the outside criminals that can dictate events inside the prison.  Adler-Olsen delves into the debilitating effect imprisonment has on an individual.  In Morck’s case he begins to question his successful career, the impact on his wife and daughter since he was sure he was innocent.  After a while he began to feel like a prisoner and felt sorry for himself. The novel shows how a person can be falsely accused and sent adrift by former colleagues allowing for the accused to acquire a reputation for duplicity, evil, and God knows what else in the eyes of the public.  It also reflects on how people turn against a person of good reputations and an effective law enforcement officer.

Another interesting area of exploration is that of the “rag sheets” that present themselves as legitimate newspapers.  In this case it is The Gossip, whose lead reporter is a rather sleazy type named, Pelle Hyttested who has carried a grudge against Morck for years, and his editor, Torben Victor, who at first decided to cooperate and help uncover the truth that Morck was being framed and rehabilitate his reputation with the public.  However, Torben changes his mind under pressure from the Police Department and decides to hang Morck out to dry. 

The author is a master creating plot lines that are unusual.  The first to grab my attention was how Eddie Jansen decides to infect his own family with Covid 19 by taking infected tissues from a hospital waste area and have his family use it as a means of convincing his wife Femke to leave their home and go into seclusion as he could not tell her that a drug cartel was trying to kill him.  Another, is the arrival of Hardy Henningsen who has spent years in physical rehabilitation from his injuries in the “nail gun case” visiting Morck in prison housed in a plastic suite with electronics that allow him a degree of mobility while offering to uncover the truth and free Morck.

(Author, Jussi Adler-Olsen)

The cold case investigation uncovers a series of murders, including Morck’s first lawyer, Adam Bang; Import-Export Company front  DKNL Transport owner Hannes Theis, and Rasmus Bruhn, a major drug courier who was tortured and killed in Rotterdam in 2014, among others.  As Department Q digs deeper and deeper they try to uncover who the assassins paymaster is; why do they want Morck dead; and which higher ups in the Police Department are complicit in the old drug case.

It will take Adler-Olsen about half the story to present a clearer picture of what happened in 2007 when he introduces Wayne Peters who he describes as discovering the joys of lying at the age of four.  The reader is provided a brief discussion of Peters’ personality and how he developed a career that led to a drug empire and the murder of anyone who crossed him.  Peters, who remains in the background with little exposure is the lynch pin of the drug cartel and his penetration of certain police departments is telling.

As Department Q defies police higher-ups it is clear that the final volume of the series is well worth reading.  The one piece of advice I would offer is to catch up on prior novels in the series as a number of important figures from the department’s past make reappearances. LOCKED IN is a satisfying ending to Adler-Olsen’s Scandinavian noir series that has done a wonderful job of entertaining readers for over a decade, especially Caroline Waight’s translations.

(Vestre Prison, Copenhagen, Denmark)

(1950s English Manor House)

Truth be told, I became familiar with Anthony Horowitz’s novel MAGPIE MURDERS by watching PBS Passport’s Masterpiece Mysteries.  I was familiar with Mr. Horowitz’s work through his screenplays of “Foyles’ War” and “Collision.”  After watching his impressive writing for television, I became a fan and began watching the “Magpie Murders” series on Masterpiece.  In the past I had purchased a number of Horowitz’s mysteries and decided it was about time I read MAGPIE MURDERS while I was binging the series with my wife on television, particularly when Horowitz stated the novel was about a “whodunnit writer who is murdered while he is writing his latest whodunnit.”

At the outset we are introduced to Susan Reyland, the editor for mystery writer Alan Conway.  She has just received his last novel in his Atticus Pund detective series and as she read on  she found herself reading a novel within a novel.  Horowitz’s approach in MAGPIE MURDERS is unique as Conway’s work is presented in detail centered around the death of Mary Blakiston, the maid/house cleaner for Sir Magnus Pye.  Soon, Pye will also be murdered, and the number of possible murderers is long – including Robert Blakiston, Mary’s son who stated in public that he wished she was dead; Johnny Whitehead, a career burglar who ran an antique shop with his wife, Gemma who felt Mary’s commentary was slandering him; Joy Sanderling, a nurse for Dr. Emelia Redwing whose marriage to Robert was blocked by Mary.  There are also a number of suspects for the Pye killing – Magnus’ wife, Francis despised her husband and was locked in a loveless marriage and was having an affair with Jack Dartford, her financial advisor in London; Clarissa Pye, Magnus’ sister who he treated horribly and robbed her of wealth; and Neville Brent, the Gardner at the Pye residence who was fired by Magnus.

( Atticus Pünd is the beguiling and clever 1950s detective featured in Alan Conway’s fictional novels. He’s a compassionate  gentleman; a German refugee of Greek-Jewish descent who survived the concentration camps)

Horowitz creates a number of subplots to go along with his main focus.  For example, Mary’s death; the development of Dingle Dell, a large tract of land part the Pye estate was being sold off to developers angering the locals who loved its beauty and did not want “citified” people from London into their village.  Further, the relationship between Magnus and his sister where Magnus lorded over his wealth to his sibling, when in fact they were twins and she emerged from the womb first, but Dr. Edgar Rennard, on his deathbed announced he had switched the twins at birth assuring the male child would be the heir to the Pye family holdings.

The other major story involves the death of Alan Conway.  A cantankerous and nasty man, who could be friendly when it was called for, was engaged in writing his last Atticus Pund detective novel when he learned he was dying of cancer.  He submitted his last manuscript and when Susan Reyland, his editor read it she learned the last chapter was missing.  This allows Susan to don the cap of a detective as she hunts for the missing chapter which holds the key to many aspects of the novel.  In addition, she is obsessed with investigating the death of Conway.  In effect, after years of editing Conway’s mysteries, Susan found herself in the middle of one.  The police ruled that Conway had committed suicide, but Susan was convinced he was murdered.

( AlanConway is the author of popular mystery novels featuring private eye Atticus Pünd. The writer is a prickly fellow who’s not above turning people from his real life into caricatures of themselves in his stories.)

As was the case with Mart Blakiston and Magnus Pye’s deaths, Conway’s possible suicide/murder offers many suspects.  For example, James Taylor, Conway’s young lover who was removed from Conway’s will; John White, Conway’s hedge fund neighbor who engaged in multiple disputes; Conway’s ex-wife Melissa; Donald Leigh, a waiter and mystery author who believed that Conway stole his ideas for a previous book; Jeffery Weaver, who did odd jobs for Conway, Claire Jenkins, Conway’s sister who was treated poorly by her brother; Vicar Robin Osborne and his spouse both naturalists, and any number of people who were angry over the sale of Dingle Dell to developers.  Apart from these suspects there are other important characters, chief among them is Charles Clover, the CEO of Clover books which published the Atticus Pund series, and  Andreas Patakis, Susan Ryeland’s boyfriend, a Greek classics teacher.

Horowitz structures the novel carefully.  The first ten pages introduce us to Conway and Reyland, then he shifts the focus to the plot in MAGPIE MYSTERIES focusing on the investigative work of Atticus Pund.  A little over halfway through the novel, Horowitz zeroes in on the death of Alan Conway and Susan Reland’s investigation with the appearance of Atticus Pund periodically.  As mentioned previously, this is a unique approach and to his credit Horowitz, who has created a complex whodunit with multiple characters offers the reader assistance as it is clear many will become confused.  Periodically, as the novel flows  Horowitz reviews aspects of the crimes and the role of important characters which refocuses the reader and makes the crime scenario easier to follow especially when characters from the Atticus Pund novel are similar to those in Susan Reyland’s investigation.

( Magpie Murders revolves around Manville’s character Susan Ryeland, a book editor who reluctantly takes on the role of amateur sleuth. Ryeland is unconventional, a free spirit who makes her own rules about living life.)

There are many shifts in each investigation as different suspects emerge and recede.  One gets the feeling that you are reading an Agatha Christie novel as Horowitz uses Conway’s talent to capture the “Golden Age” of British whodunits by including the country manor as a setting for a complicated murder, a cast of eccentric characters, and a detective who arrives as an outsider.  Horowitz writes with a deft hand and has created a tightly plotted murder mystery(s) with clever asides as it is clear the author is poking fun at the whodunit genre.  Despite some meandering on the author’s part, the reader will be entertained, and it will be worth the time invested in engaging the novel.  P.S.  The Masterpiece Mystery is as good as the novel!

(Bath, England Manor House)

Photos of characters are from the Masterpiece Mysteries series)

(Brighton, UK Police Station)

Recently, my wife and I came across the television crime series GRACE on BritBox.  The series is based on the crime novels written by Peter James who is a master of the crime genre.  James’ work is much loved by crime and thriller fans for his fast-paced page-turners full of unexpected plot twists, sinister characters, and accurate portrayal of modern day policing, he has won over forty awards for his work including the WHSmith Best Crime Author of All Time Award and Crime Writers’ Association Diamond Dagger.  Since we enjoyed the television series so much I decided it might be interesting to explore the novels that the series is based on.  James’ has written twenty-one novels in the series, the latest published about a month ago entitled, THEY THOUGHT I WAS DEAD which focuses on Roy Grace’s wife who years before disappeared without a trace.  Grace immediately launched an investigation into his missing spouse, but after years of wondering what occurred as is recounted in the television series, he made little progress.

The first book in the series, DEAD SIMPLE centers on a prank that has gone wrong.  At Michael Harrison’s bachelor party his friends lock him in a coffin with only a few hours of oxygen left. A few hours later, his friends who orchestrated the prank, are involved in a tragic accident, leaving Michael’s distraught fiancée, Ashley Harper desperate for answers. Detective Superintendent Roy Grace is brought in to unravel the mystery, but he soon realizes that the one man who ought to know Michael’s whereabouts is maintaining silence since Robbo, Pete, and Luke are killed in the accident with another Josh, hangs on for a few days before he will pass on.  Grace can empathize with Ashley, as he is a man who is haunted by his own missing wife.

James creates an interesting, tangled web as what appears to be a prank gone wrong turns out to be something more sinister.  Mike Warren was also supposed to be part of the prank, but he was delayed and was not present.  However, Warren was Michael Harrison’s partner at Double-M Properties, a real estate developer.  The company was extremely successful due to Warren’s hard work with Michael living his normal lazy, womanizing life.  The reason he was a partner was because he put up more money when the company was founded than Warren.  The standard questions include; is it a coincidence that Warren was not present for the prank which could result in his partner’s death?  Or was it because all of the participants had been victims of Harrison’s pranking in the past and this was just an innocent prank gone horribly wrong because of an accident?  In following the plot line other pertinent questions emerge which the reader probably would not consider.

As James constructs his plot he leaves out no detail.  His portrayal of Harrison trapped inside the coffin is searing as he is unable to communicate with the outside world and water rises in the coffin and his breathing tube disappears.  In dealing with Detective Grace, James creates an interest in the paranormal which possibly could blow up in his face as the defense attorney makes fun of him in court and this carries over to Grace’s boss back at the police station.    In Grace’s defense the use of a “medium” was something he turned to in the search for his wife, so he felt as a last resort in the murder case why not try it once again.  Some would find integrating a “medium” into the story as overkill, but for me it is understandable.

(Peter James, author)

James’ develops his Roy Grace character carefully filling in gaps in his life and career for the reader to get to know him.  Grace is a good detective who wades through a great deal of information – the Cayman Islands account Harrison shared with Warren, the false notes Grace picks up at the canceled wedding, Ashley’s relationship with Michael’s friends, among others.  For Grace it is clear that the situation is more involved than a prank gone wrong.

As James develops his novel a number of characters and scenes stand out.  As to the scenes, the back and forth between Harrison locked in the coffin and Davey, the son of a retired police officer, a young man who is mentally challenged is riveting.  The scenes involving Ashley Harper and Vic Delany are very disturbing.  The scenes involving Grace’s “team” reflect on how good policing should be approached.  There are many others as James knows how to create actions and conversations which draw the reader in.  As to characters Ashley Harper or Alexandra Huron or possibly Anne Hampson is fascinating as we really do not know who they are.  Max Candille and John Stempe, both mediums who Grace relies upon.  The relationship between Mark Warren and Michael Harrison is a key to the plot.  Lastly, is Vic Delaney or Bradley Cunningham who supposedly is Ashley Harper’s uncle, lover, etc.  In all cases you must read on to determine what is real and what is not.

James’ novel is rather mundane for the first one third of the story.  The author then drops an explosive change to the plot which the reader would never expect, allowing the last two thirds of the book to be hard to put down.  After reading DEAD SIMPLE it is obvious that James’ reputation is well deserved, and I look forward to continuing with the Grace series.

(1320 John A Quitman Blvd, Natchez, MS 39120, USA)

A 963 page novel that weighs quite a bit is a tall task for any reader.  Can it maintain your interest?  Is it worth the time and effort involved in digesting it?  Apart from the fact that the publisher, William Morrow, Inc. has employed the cheapest paper possible in the production process leading to torn pages and other issues the answer is a resounding yes.  The book I am alluding to is Greg Iles’ latest Cage Penn novel, SOUTHERN MAN.  The effort continues the story of Mr. Penn that cemented his character portrait in Iles’ NATCHEZ BURNING trilogy and CEMETERY ROAD.  Once again set in what Phil Ochs used to sing about in “Here’s to the state of Mississippi” in the 1960s, the cities of Natchez and Bienville emerge as the dominant localities for another Iles’ epic.

Iles’ casts a wide net in his story.  We renewed our acquaintance with Penn fifteen years following the conclusion of the previous novel.  The author does a marvelous job of bringing the reader up to speed and filling in the gaps of what occurred during the previous decade or two.  This allows the book to be read as a standard–alone; but it is more satisfying if you have read the previous stories.  We find Penn with a prosthetic leg as his mother is dying of cancer, and his daughter Annie, a civil rights attorney, wounded at a concert that was a demonstration against police violence after a 12 year old black boy is killed by police in Memphis.  Further, Penn is obsessed with learning how his father died in the infamous Parchman Prison and how he had hoped to rescue him from the gang violence  and corruption that existed all the way to Jackson, the state capital.

The storyline is very timely as issues of third party candidates, dissatisfaction with Donald Trump, racial hatred and violence fostered by white supremacists, and the fears for the loss of democracy are all present.  A civil war is a possibility as a “supposed” radical black group refuses to accept the murders, illegal police actions, and the “good old boy network” that seems to still dominate the south decides to fight back.  Another storyline centers on a former Army Special Operations Sergeant, Robert E. Lee White who gained notoriety as part of the team that captured and killed Abu Nasir, an al-Qaeda leader in a 2008 raid in Afghanistan.  Lee, dubbed the “TikTok candidate” has energized the youth of America and other age groups and hopes to be elected president over the Democratic and Republican candidates. 

(Mississippi lynching)

The story pits black vs. white, states rights vs. federal power, and the survival of democracy pitted against a fascist threat.  As Iles proceeds his historical knowledge from 1960s rock n’ roll, the civil rights movement, to political crusades is impeccable.  Ile’s inventive mind has placed America on the eve of a possible civil war and anarchy and contains many of the elements of our current political and racial state of affairs.

Iles offers an alternative scenario for the 2024 election relying on white anger and white panic.  The story begins with a rock concert serving as the basis for a demonstration against police violence.  The venue is Missionary Hill and after a noise complaint Tenisaw County Sheriff deputies mishandle the situation resulting in the killing of close to thirty people, women and children among them, all black.  Known as the Mission Hill Massacre, Iles set the stage for the violence, paranoia, and political opportunity that follows.

At this point we learn that at age 38 Penn was diagnosed with myeloma, an obscure blood disorder that his mother, Peggy Cage has just passed from which impacts his behavior throughout the novel.  Though Penn dominates the novel, other characters play important roles.  One of the key actors is Robert E. Lee White, a man who on the surface is a war hero, successful podcast radio host, and an aspiring politician who hopes to use the massacre at Mission Hill as the starting point of his political campaign.  Iles carefully teases the reader as to what White’s plans are to enhance his candidacy, however his true colors emerge as the story progresses.  High on his list of tactics include assassination, befriending Penn and his daughter Annie.  Further, he manipulates Charles Dufort, probably the richest man in Mississippi, Donny Kilmer, an extremely violent redneck, Sheriff Buck Tarleton, militia leader Shotwell Barlow, Martyn Black, a gamer and drone operator who happens to be White’s cousin, and most importantly the racial situation in southwest Mississippi. 

White has an important personal problem he must overcome.  First, he is gay and his former lover Charlot Dufort, the son of a wealthy father who refuses to help him out of drug and gambling induced debt.  Second, Tommy Russo, the leading organized crime figure in Bienville and Natchez is also a loan shark that has Charlot in his crosshairs.  Three, Corey Evers, his right hand man and lover who witnesses White’s sexual liaison with Sophie Dufort, the daughter of Charles Dufort.  If the public learns of White’s past sexual proclivities his campaign is finished.

(Author, Greg Iles)

A number of characters stand in White’s way apart from Penn.  His daughter, Annie Penn, a civil rights lawyer at first trusts White then she witnesses his true colors.  Marshall McEwan, the owner and editor of the Natchez Daily newspaper, the Watchmen.  Andrew McKinny, a black historian who wants to restore Penn’s home, Pencarrow, as a monument to slavery and how it affected blacks during the 19^th century.  Dan Kelly, a former Delta Special Forces operative and close friend of Penn.  Kenrick Washington, a black veteran, town guide, and college student who emerges as a hero at Mission Hill..  Nadine Sullivan, bookstore owner, former attorney who might be in a relationship with Penn.  All play important roles in the novel.

Iles’ uses White’s strategy as one story line.  The second rests upon the violence that has been taking over Bienville since the massacre.  Third, the attempts of the Poker Club and white supremacists to take over county government and strip Bienville, run by blacks of their governmental powers.  Former southern plantation mansions are being burnt to the ground including Pencarrow, the home Penn purchased for his dying mother.  The question is who was responsible.  Was it black radicals bent on revenge calling themselves “the Bastard Sons of the Confederacy,” or was it a false flag operation by white supremacists supported by the Sheriff’s office or the members of the Poker Club, made up of the political elite in the area.  Third, Iles constructs a mini novel within the larger story.  He successfully integrates the background history of southwest Mississippi during the pre-Civil War era.  Applying the research conducted by Peggy Cage the last years of her life as she tries to determine the truth of her family’s lineage.  She is able to link Barlow’s and Pencarrow with her family through diary entries, interviews and other primary materials which will result in undercutting what Penn and his mother believed their entire lives.  Penn always wondered about the 1861 lynchings that killed 50 slaves and tortured many more only a few miles from his childhood home-was he in some way related to the men who committed these murders?  Iles creates numerous twists and turns and is able to expertly tie all of these threads together in creating an amazing tale.

Fear and rage dominate the novel similarly to today’s political and racial occurrences.  The murder of Mayor “Doc” Berry, seen as Bienville’s reincarnation of Martin Luther King by a redneck sheriff contributes to the emotional undercurrents of rage.  The popularity of another hero, Kendrick Washington provides White with a literal target to boost his popularity.  The actions of Ray Ransom, a Vietnam veteran who did time as a convict at Parchman but reformed his life by working with disadvantaged children, and friend of Penn are further characters enveloped in the racial storm throughout the novel.

The racial unrest and violence and political machinations that Iles portrays will keep the reader on the edge of their seats as he manipulates your emotions as you react to the story line with nothing getting lost in the shuffle.  The book is terrifying because of its plausibility as Iles captures the tinderbox that is America today.  It is an expertly crafted political and racial thriller which reverberates with our current world, and you should not let the book’s length deter you – it is quite a ride and worth getting aboard.

(Natchez, MS Plantation)

(The Dakota, home of Win Lockwood)

It has been eight years since best selling author Harlen Coben released a new Myron Bolitar novel.  The series began in 1995 with DEAL BREAKER introducing a wonderful storyline that centered around a former basketball star forced into retirement due to injury who reinvented himself as a sports agent.  Over the years Coben has written eleven renditions of his Bolitar series that exhibited his humor, acerbic wit, and well thought out plots that have created millions of readers.  To my immense joy and excitement Coben has just released his newest version of the series, THINK TWICE, which possesses all the characteristics that have made his other books in the series such a success.

Coben is a remarkable storyteller who has won numerous awards for his Bolitar series.  In his current novel we are introduced to renowned basketball coach Greg Downing who has recently passed away. In fact, Bolitar had given the eulogy at his funeral. To Bolitar’s surprise two federal agents entered his office demanding to know Downing’s whereabouts, claiming he was alive since he was now a suspect in a double murder. Bolitar is stunned but soon realizes that his former adversary and client is alive.

Coben launches his plot by describing how a murder takes place and moves on to introduce a series of interesting characters which are the hallmark of Coben’s novels.  First, we revisit cast members of the previous books that dominate his latest. Obviously, Bolitar takes center stage as does his friend and business partner Win Lockwood.  Time has changed both men, Bolitar more so than Lockwood.  We learn that the former basketball star is now married for the third time and has a biological son who plays a significant role in the storyline.  Lockwood on the other hand, has aged but remains a wealthy snob who dominates any room he enters.  Esperanza Diaz no longer works for Bolitar and has joined the law firm of Fisher, Friedman, and Diaz.  Big Cyndi, Bolitar’s assistant in his sports/law agency, remains “Big Cydni.”

(Harlen Coben, author)

The story begins with a series of contradictions where murders keep occurring and most seem solved by the FBI.  However, those involving Downing morph into a plot line that leads to a brilliant serial killer who sets up a number of murderers by creating evidence against them to cover their own tracks.  A substantial portion of the novel revolves around how Bolitar, Lockwood, and others prove that Downing who went off the grid three years before for reasons Coben makes clear was not a killer, despite the FBI belief that he was.  Of course, the remainder of the story centers on finding the real serial killer.

In doing so Coben’s acerbic wit is paramount.  His character’s commentary is sarcastic, funny, are dead on.  Remark like; “Insecure enraged men are a growth industry,” Bolitar’s father’s remarks concerning the joys of edibles that have improved his sex life after decades of marriage, and his description of a basketball pickup game is priceless along with new characters he introduces.  We meet Joey the Toe, a mobster named Joseph Turant who has been convicted by the Feds for a crime he did not commit.  Turant is convicted because the Feds supposedly pressured a gay individual to testify against him.  Greg Downing plays one of the lead roles and is married to Bolitar’s ex-wife and raises Bolitar’s biological son named Jeremy who is introduced as a member of the US Army, but as the story evolves that is not his occupation.  Emily, Bolitar’s ex. and Downing’s spouse provides insights into her relationships with both her husbands.  Grace Konners, Greg Downing’s lover.  Ronald Prine, a dirty Philadelphia real estate mogul.  PT, a career FBI insider who helped Bolitar and Lockwood in the past, now guides them in their investigation.  Terese, a journalist and Bolitar’s latest spouse, and lastly, Sadie Fisher, a dynamic lawyer who represents Downing.  Then there are those who are accused of murder and are innocent, and of course the murder victims themselves.

The core of the novel are secrets, lies, and a murderous conspiracy that stretches back into the past.  In true Coben fashion the reader has no clue as to who the guilty party is.  The twists and turns can sometimes become confusing, but soon divergent scenes begin to make sense as Bolitar and Lockwood get closer and closer to solving the case, but as they do danger lurks in the background.

If you enjoyed Coben’s previous Bolitar yarns this one should measure up and meet your expectations, especially the ending.   A great summer read – enjoy.

(The photograph can be dated to about 1910 by the automobiles at the curb, and by the presence of the Langham Apartments
at 135 Central Park
 West between 73rd and 74th Streets, which was completed in 1906)

(Lefortovo Prison, Moscow, Russia)

A few months ago, I was introduced to David McCloskey’s first novel, DAMASCUS STATION.  The book was a “thriller,” and though it was a fictional account that focused in large part on the Syrian Civil War, its realistic portrayal of events had characteristics of non-fiction and created a portal for the reader to view events in the Middle East through the lens of an American intelligence operative.  Further, it offered an accurate portrayal of how CIA agents operated in the field, how they were trained, and why their work is so important to American national security.  In his newest novel McCloskey, a former CIA analyst and consultant at McKinsey and Company has authored MOSCOW X another entertaining work that a former CIA operative describes as a “brilliant novel that captures the nuances of field work in hostile environments and the terror that grips every intelligence officer when confronting enemies.”

In his latest effort McCloskey creates an intricate plot that must be followed carefully.  It opens as an FSB agent on a mission from the FSB head steals an enormous sum of money  from a billionaire oligarch who preceded the FSB head.  In response to this action, the oligarch’s daughter, an SVR operative plots to recover the money and respond to threats against her family’s wealth.  The daughter is married to another FSB agent, who also happens to be in charge of $700 million of Vladimir Putin’s personal treasure.

(Drone photo of the palace, which sits some 18 kilometers down the coast from the popular Russian holiday town of Gelendzhik)

As the novel evolves, McCloskey introduces two scenarios.  First, we are introduced to Artemis Aphrodite Proctor, CIA Station Chief in Tajikistan, who succumbs to a honey trap set by the FSB and refuses recruitment resulting in her dispatch to Langley, Virginia.  The actions Proctor takes form a central part of the story.  Second, involves the wealth of Andrei Apagov, chairman of Rossiya Industrial, a Russian conglomerate swollen with the state’s most strategic assets.  Apagov’s bank is robbed of 200 gold bars by FSB Lieutenant Colonel Konstantine Konstanstinovich Chernov, a Russian nationalist whose boss, Vassily Platonovich Gusev, known as “Goose,” has ordered the seizure against an old foe.  Apagov wants his daughter Anna who is a SVR operative to investigate what has occurred before they confront President Putin who may lock them away in Siberia and steal the rest of their wealth.  It is Anna’s job to infiltrate Goose’s operation to recover the family’s assets and in doing so must use her estranged husband Vadim Kovalchuk, head of the Private Wealth Division at Bank Rossiya as bait.

These two scenarios come together and at times overlap as the espionage thriller evolves.  McCloskey creates the realistic atmosphere of spy tradecraft.  His discussion of what it was like to enter Russia as an outsider, the types of surveillance Russians employ, the tools needed to survive all seem spot on, i.e., various devices CIA and FSB “techies” can deliver; preparation for the op – plying people with vodka, creating antidotes for Russian food and drinking etc.  McClosky provides an in depth analysis as to how the FSB goes after someone it is trying to ruin as Stalin’s NKVD used to argue that “your lack of a criminal record is not to your merit.  It is our flaw.”

Apart from the characters previously mentioned, McCloskey introduces a series of personalities that are key to the story’s development.  Hortensia (Sia) Fox works at the Hynes, Dawson law firm which laundered money and protected oligarch wealth at the same time as  working for the CIA.  Maximiliano Castillo, a Mexican horse rancher whose family has worked with the CIA for decades.  Most importantly is Aphrodite Proctor who upon returning to CIA headquarters developed an operation to flip Anna or her estranged husband, Vadim as a means of gaining access to important personal information pertaining to Putin’s wealth.  McClosky carefully develops each character and their personal agendas as the plot unfolds – a plot that is emblematic of the CIA–FSB conflict that is ongoing today.

(David McCloskey, author)

There are other important characters, but the key is that as Proctor employs Sia and Max to recruit Anna for the CIA, Anna is trying to recruit Sia for the SVR.  Sia and Anna would soon realize they had a common enemy and should work together despite the fact they had different goals in mind.  They will form a key element as the CIA hopes to take advantage of internal Russian squabbles concerning money, property, and Putin’s overall wealth.

McCloskey introduces a different element in his current work that differs from DAMASCUS STATION and events pertaining to the Syrian Civil War.  The use of technology is at the forefront of the effort to gain secrets relevant to Putin’s wealth.  Different technologies are integrated into the story as CIA “techies” penetrate Vadim’s personal computer and other sites and sources which takes the plot to a new level.

The details of surveillance, arrests, threats, disinformation, and violence are all essential to the outcome of the plot.  McCloskey’s observations are relevant to today’s attitude by large swaths of the Russian population.  As Anna argues with Sia that she does not want to overthrow Putin.  She sees herself as a Russian patriot believing that Russia has always been ruled by an autocrat and that governmental system is the only way the Russian people can survive.  She argues that the Russian people seem comfortable with corruption and chaos which was the norm and she, as most Russians today have no problem with it.

McCloskey has authored another intense espionage caper mixing tradecraft and glitz to maintain the reader’s attention.  The plot is loaded with double and triple crosses and after about 100 pages you will not want to stop reading this mesmerizing tale of intrigue.

(Lefortovo Prison, Moscow, Russia)