First Sentence: Everyone is looking at me funny.
The Underwater Investigation Unit is called
out to a submerged van at Pond 65. The passenger
has been recovered; but Detective Sloan McPherson, the team's top diver, needs
to recover the driver. Rather than one, she finds three bodies in the van, and
evidence of a fifth person having been involved. The investigation puts McPherson and the UIU
on the trail of the serial killer, while also trying to catch a thief stealing
millions of electronic equipment off mega-yachts.
Mayne
has a great voice layered with wry humor—"If you have any questions,
please contact us through our website," George concludes." … "We
have a website?" I ask in a whisper." He is a true storyteller who creates wonderful
characters that play into one another. One
wants to share passages of his writing with others. Not every male author writes women well. Mayne is one who truly does, and it is a
pleasure to read.
Sloan is fully dimensional. There is a nice injection of the character's
personal life which adds balance to the story, injecting light into the dark.
There is realism in admitting no one is a perfect parent. one provides compelling She is introspective
both about the case—"I see two different men in front of me. One is the monster. The other is the victim. The victim didn't make the monster, but it
sure did nurture him.", and her life as a cop—"…where do I go from
here? Catching the New River Bandits was
a good thing, but in no way deeply fulfilling."
Having
Sloan as an archeologist, as well as a diver and cop, brings dimension to the
character and opens interesting doors. The
plot is very well done and filled with surprises, yet none of them feel
contrived. The things one learns are unusual.
Periodic
references to events from the first book, don't distract from the current story,
nor does the crossover reference to Mayne's Theo Cray series. This book stands nicely on its own merit.
Of
the two cases, one is fairly straightforward, but the second takes one down a
surprising, twisty path with some definite "Oh, my" moments. Although
the main plot is about a serial killer, the book is far more suspenseful than
gory.
Mayne, Andrew – 2nd in series
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I do appreciate an author who can weave some wit into a story and still keep the reader focused on the plot. And I like the fact that Sloan is a strong character without being a 'superhero.' We all have our faults and weaknesses, and I like it when an author keeps that in mind. Glad you enjoyed the story.
ReplyDeleteI agree. Mayne has become a real favorite, except for a couple of his Theo Cray books which were very dark. His next book joins Cray and Jessica Blackthorn--love her. That should be interesting.
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