Description:

Terrifyingly authentic, London-set debut crime novel with a psychological edge, by an ex-Met detective. Perfect for fans of Mark Billingham, Peter James and Stuart MacBride. NO MOTIVE. NO MERCY. NO REMORSE. A series of brutal killings leaves South London’s Murder Investigation Unit struggling to connect the crimes: no recognizable method; no forensic evidence; and the victims have nothing in common. NO TIME TO LOSE. DI Sean Corrigan’s troubled past has left him with an uncanny ability to identify the darkness in others – a darkness he struggles to keep buried within his own psyche. Sean knows these murders are the work of one man. As the violence escalates, Sean must find the evidence he needs to bring the perpetrator to justice – before the next attack hits too close to home… ** ### From Booklist Detective Inspector Sean Corrigan, leader of one of South London’s murder-investigation units, arrives at a crime scene at 3 a.m. and finds a young man savagely murdered in his flat. It looks like a straightforward domestic crime, but the complete absence of forensic evidence and Corrigan’s near-synesthetic intuition tell him that this murder is something much darker. His intuition is correct: the culprit is a serial killer who changes his MO for each killing. First-novelist Delaney, once a London homicide investigator, has blended the police procedural with the psychological thriller. The result is a tense, fast-paced, believable look at London policing, complete with many fascinating details, for example, Scotland Yard views psychological profiling as of very limited value, preferring to maintain the Method Index, a searchable collection of unusual crimes. The serial killer functions as narrator on occasion, and his ruminations of omnipotence suggest that he misunderstands Nietzsche’s idea of the Superman. Delaney’s debut is stylish, ambitious, and a surefire winner. --Thomas Gaughan ### Review “A striking debut from a former Murder Squad detective. Delaney is not his real name, but there is no doubt about his inside knowledge and ability to convey it.” (Daily Mail (London)) “A confident, aggressive and very promising debut by a former Met detective.” (The Times (London)) “In this gritty and hard-hitting crime novel, Delaney manages to keep the reader’s attention from the first page, with gripping flashbacks from the perspective of the killer, to the very end.” (Iron Mountain Daily News) “An addictive story . . . Delaney’s accomplished debut captivates and chills.” (Richmond Times-Dispatch)