Description:

The Number One bestselling, award-winning Queen of crime fiction Val McDermid delivers a searing psychological suspense thriller. A serial killer is on the loose. His victims? Crime writers… A murderer is at large, hunting with a bloodlust that shatters all the conventional wisdom on how serial killers operate. Professor Fiona Cameron is a psychologist who uses computer technology to track serial offenders. She vowed never to work for the Met again after they went against her advice and screwed up an investigation as a result. But when her lover, thriller writer Kit Martin, tells her a fellow crime novelist has been murdered, Fiona can’t help taking an interest. With the killer striking again, Fiona is caught in a race against time, not only to save a life, but to bring herself redemption, both personal and professional. ### From Publishers Weekly Though McDermid skillfully alternates point of view and creates memorable scenes and complex characters, her latest falls short of the high standard set by her previous novel, A Place of Execution (2000), which was an Edgar finalist. Psychology professor Fiona Campbell, a consultant with London's Metropolitan Police, specializes in crime linkage and geographical profiling using sophisticated computer technology. The competitive, self-confident Fiona was recently replaced on a case by another expert, who ended up misleading the police; their suspect, whom Fiona had thought innocent, was eventually released. While Fiona is working with the Spanish police to catch a vicious murderer, a new situation comes to light back in the U.K.: the serial killings of successful thriller writers who are threatened, then murdered following details from their most popular novel. Fiona lives with Kit Martin, author of you guessed it popular thrillers about serial killers. Their best friend, Det. Superintendent Steve Preston, needs Fiona's help in yet another investigation. Initially, she refuses to resume working with the police, but the personal dimensions draw her in. After much misdirection, the cases mesh, with a Spanish connection. McDermid builds suspense by inserting passages from the thriller novels, e-mails, crime Web sites and the killer's journal. Unfortunately, the killer's motive is somewhat unconvincing, while the reader can anticipate most of the plot twists. Nonetheless, given the acclaim for A Place of Execution, expect strong sales. (Oct. 12)novel in 1995. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc. ### From Library Journal Criminal psychologist Fiona Cameron is trained to look for patterns in murders. Therefore, when two writers of thrillers are murdered, one in Scotland and one in Ireland, she grows worried about her lover, Kit Martin, a British crime novelist. While trying to protect Kit, Fiona must carry on with her work as a psychology professor and a consultant with the Spanish authorities investigating a series of murders in Toledo. McDermid, whose A Place of Execution appeared on the New York Times Book Review's Notable Books list in 2000, has created a complex character in Fiona. She is brilliant, beautiful, practical, passionate, and strong if somewhat overly assertive. Although the repartee between Fiona and Kit is corny, the relationship is believable. McDermid's style is melodramatic in places, and her foreshadowing is heavy-handed, but overall this is a compelling, intricately plotted page-turner. Recommended for public libraries. Jane la Plante, Minot State Univ., ND Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.