Everyone Lies

Starred review from May 12, 2014
Under the Garrett pseudonym, crime writer Margaret Murphy (Now You See Me) and forensic scientist Dave Barclay take an unflinching look at two people rebuilding their lives, and at the underworld of Manchester, England, in this outstanding collaborative debut, which balances the intricacies of forensics with the cerebral instincts of crime investigation. Det. Insp. Kate Simms’s promising career derailed five years earlier when she gave forensics expert Nick Fennimore inside information about the investigation into the disappearance of his wife, Rachel, and their 10-year-old daughter, Suzie. A case involving prostitutes who have died from tainted drugs may put Kate’s career back on track. Although a suspect is arrested after a pop star’s overdose, Simms believes that the case is far from over when more women die. For help, Kate turns to Nick, who now works as a forensics lecturer at Gordon University in Aberdeen and scans age progression sites to see how his daughter may have aged. The brisk plot never strays with its complex exploration of prostitutes and crime lords and its affecting look at Kate and Nick’s complicated relationship. Agent: Felicity Blunt, Curtis Brown (U.K.).

June 15, 2014
A prostitute's murder reunites a detective and a forensic specialist in this gritty procedural debut.When Nick Fennimore, a science professor in Scotland, gets a phone call from Kate Simms, part of him wants to tell her she has the wrong number. Five years ago, they worked together when he was a member of the National Crime Faculty and she was a promising detective sergeant. Their collaboration ended when he dragged her into a personal case, heedless of the fact that it would derail her career. Now he feels nothing but guilt, even though Kate has worked her way up to the rank of detective chief inspector with the Manchester police. She asks Nick-failed genetics student, successful gambler, former scene of crime officer, toxicology expert-to analyze statistics about a recent upsurge in female deaths from heroin overdose. Together, they discover that the spike in deaths began just about the time of Operation Snowstorm, when the police seized heroin worth 4.5 million. Now, dealers are forced to cut their product with a substance that's sending users into fatal shock, including a young woman with her face beaten to a pulp. The more Kate learns about the latest victim, the more determined she is to put a face back on her and find her killer, though her bosses would rather write off the case as just one more dead prostitute. But Kate won't let it go. Nick is struggling with his own issues, but he agrees to act as her unauthorized consultant, even though their teamwork could cost her her job. When they confront the killer, they both find out how much more they're risking to bring justice to the dead.The pseudonymous pair who write as Garrett skillfully weave just enough of the crime-solving partners' past and hints about a more hopeful future to add even more suspense to the fast-paced plot.

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July 1, 2014
Nick Fennimore nearly lost his mind when his wife and daughter went missing, and when DCI Kate Simms allowed Nick to overstep his bounds, she earned a demotion. She fought her way back, only to land a case nobody wants. Heroin overdoses have been multiplying in a seedy part of Manchester, but no one really cares until a pop star joins their ranks. The case is dumped on Simms, who quietly enlists Fennimore's help. Then another prostitute turns up dead, tortured and raped, and Fennimore really needs to put his crime-scene skills to the test. Misogynistic bosses and lying witnesses are thwarting Simms, but she soldiers on until her family is threatened, bringing matters to a head. The backstory between Fennimore and Simms is tantalizingly glossed over, adding tension to the story, as readers attempt to work out the tension between the characters. This gritty British thriller will appeal to fans of Ken Bruen and Val McDermid. A. D. Garrett is a pseudonym for the writing team of novelist Margaret Murphy and forensics professor Dave Barclay.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)