Black and Blue by David Rosenfelt

First Sentence:  I feel like a jerk.

            

A single shot to the heart from a high-powered distance made from a distance killed Walter Brookings 18 months ago.  The case, investigated by Doug Brock, remained unsolved and went cold.  Now, there's a second murder; same M.O. and even the forensics match.  The difference is that Brock suffers partial amnesia from a gunshot to the head.  He survived, but not all of his memory did.  With the help of his partner, and girlfriend Jessica, who is also on the force, Brock is not only investigating the new case, but digging back into the previous case as well.

            

Partial amnesia is always an interesting subject and an excellent hook for a protagonist.  However, it takes more than that for a book to be compelling, and Rosenfelt delivers.

            

A very nice cross-over into Rosenlfelt's Carpenter series is done by brining in the characters of police Captain Pete Stanton, as well as attorney Andy Carpenter and Vince Sanders, editor of the local paper.  There is an arrogance to Brock which can be annoying, but it's nicely balanced by self-doubt—"…the two guys that I shot were apparently total scumbags who had themselves committed murder.  But even so, I took their lives, and it somehow seems weirdly disrespectful that I have no recollection of doing so."

            

Multiple points of view can be awkward, but Rosenfelt makes them work.  However, one of his greatest skills is the ever-escalating level of suspense and that he keeps one guessing with lots of twists along the way.

      
"Black and Blue" has a cleverly done plot that makes sense once it's all put together.  Rosenfelt takes the suspense right down to the wire and gives one a captivating, gripping read.

BLACK & BLUE (PolProc-Doug Brock-New Jersey-Contemp) - VG

      Rosenfelt, David – 3^rd in series

      Minotaur Books, March 2019