Bannister deftly examines the dedication and determination of three types of hirelings--a prostitute, an assassin and a British police officer--in this eighth, expertly crafted entry in her Castlemere, England, series (Broken Lines, Forecasts, Feb. 22, etc.) . When a prostitute falls from the roof of a hotel, the police aren't sure whether it's accident, suicide or murder. But when they see her brutally beaten body and learn of the incredible amount of heroin in her system, they realize they have a savage murderer on the loose. Since an international business conference was taking place in the hotel at the probable time of the woman's death, Detective Superintendent Shapiro hones in on the conference's organizer, Philip Kendall, for information. The DS fears that the killer will hire an assassin to stop those who know his identity, and, indeed, someone shoots at Kendall. Then Shapiro is seriously wounded protecting the man from a second shot. Since Kendall protests that he knows nothing about the woman's murder and can't understand why anyone would want to kill him, the investigation seems to be at a standstill--until the dead woman's friend, who has been in hiding, phones to say she was with the victim while she was being beaten. Quirky Detective Sergeant Donovan is sent to pick up prostitute Maddie Cotterick so that she can identify her friend's killer. But they, too, are followed by the persistent assassin. Will Donovan be able to deliver Cotterick into the hands of his superiors, or will the assassin prove to be an inescapable instrument of destruction? Bannister pours on the tension as the ill-equipped Castlemere police force battle for justice in what seems to be a no-win situation. (Dec.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Castlemere (England) detectives Shapiro, Graham, and Donovan face a tough case: a murdered prostitute with ties to a local international business convention. A character-based police procedural from an expert.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Même si le beau temps n'est pas forcément au rendez-vous lorsqu'on a choisi de descendre les rivières britanniques en péniche, découvrir un cadavre à l'avant de son bateau n'est pas prévu dans les inconvénients de la croisière...
La police de Castlemere ne sait que faire de cette jeune femme, apparemment battue et complètement nue, dont personne n'a signalé la disparition.
Et le superintendant Shapiro n'est pas au bout de découvertes étranges : après l'inconnue, c'est au tour d'un mouton de passer de vie à trépas, apparemment assassiné par un tueur professionnel.
Description:
From Publishers Weekly
Bannister deftly examines the dedication and determination of three types of hirelings--a prostitute, an assassin and a British police officer--in this eighth, expertly crafted entry in her Castlemere, England, series (Broken Lines, Forecasts, Feb. 22, etc.) . When a prostitute falls from the roof of a hotel, the police aren't sure whether it's accident, suicide or murder. But when they see her brutally beaten body and learn of the incredible amount of heroin in her system, they realize they have a savage murderer on the loose. Since an international business conference was taking place in the hotel at the probable time of the woman's death, Detective Superintendent Shapiro hones in on the conference's organizer, Philip Kendall, for information. The DS fears that the killer will hire an assassin to stop those who know his identity, and, indeed, someone shoots at Kendall. Then Shapiro is seriously wounded protecting the man from a second shot. Since Kendall protests that he knows nothing about the woman's murder and can't understand why anyone would want to kill him, the investigation seems to be at a standstill--until the dead woman's friend, who has been in hiding, phones to say she was with the victim while she was being beaten. Quirky Detective Sergeant Donovan is sent to pick up prostitute Maddie Cotterick so that she can identify her friend's killer. But they, too, are followed by the persistent assassin. Will Donovan be able to deliver Cotterick into the hands of his superiors, or will the assassin prove to be an inescapable instrument of destruction? Bannister pours on the tension as the ill-equipped Castlemere police force battle for justice in what seems to be a no-win situation. (Dec.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Castlemere (England) detectives Shapiro, Graham, and Donovan face a tough case: a murdered prostitute with ties to a local international business convention. A character-based police procedural from an expert.
Même si le beau temps n'est pas forcément au rendez-vous lorsqu'on a choisi de descendre les rivières britanniques en péniche, découvrir un cadavre à l'avant de son bateau n'est pas prévu dans les inconvénients de la croisière...Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
La police de Castlemere ne sait que faire de cette jeune femme, apparemment battue et complètement nue, dont personne n'a signalé la disparition.
Et le superintendant Shapiro n'est pas au bout de découvertes étranges : après l'inconnue, c'est au tour d'un mouton de passer de vie à trépas, apparemment assassiné par un tueur professionnel.