In for the Kill

September 3, 2007
Shamus and Edgar award–winner Lutz gives us further proof of his enormous talent for crafting great police fiction in his latest, a deceivingly standard story that pulls retired NYPD homicide detective Frank Quinn back into action to help stop a woman-killing madman in New York City. The Butcher, who leaves the dismembered bodies of his victims stacked in bathtubs, somehow avoids leaving any forensic evidence, and it doesn't take much persuading for Quinn's old friend Deputy Chief Harley Renz to get the old detective on the case. Teamed up with an old flame, officer Pearl Kasner, Quinn gets in emotionally complicated waters early on—but things get personal when they realize the first letter of the last names of the five women killed so far spell out Q-u-i-n-n. And that's before Quinn's headstrong daughter unexpectedly shows up in the city. As the bodies pile up, Lutz handles the familiar situation—aging detective locked in battle of wits with brilliant killer—with characteristic finesse, keeping suspense taut, details gritty and twists surprising. Though his New York might as well be Anycity, U.S.A., Lutz has a thorough command of plot and character, making this another enthralling page turner.