The killing habit

A spate of cat deaths propels Billingham's intriguing 15th novel featuring London Det. Insp. Tom Thorne (after 2017's Love like Blood). Assigned to the case, Thorne hates the ridicule that comes with it, until he discovers that the cats are connected to a group of unsolved murders. Since the investigation requires database searches and organizing information, tasks that aren't this rule-breaker's strength, he seeks the help of meticulous Det. Insp. Nicola Tanner, who had a major role in the previous book. Meanwhile, Tanner has her own case to solve: junkie Andan Jandali's murder. Thorne and Tanner team up and work both cases. Tanner's leads to a drug ring and a mysterious woman called the Duchess; Thorne's to a dating website where a serial killer hunts his victims. The stakes rise when a sting operation goes bad and puts Tanner in harm's way. Readers have a dizzying array of characters to keep track of, but the action moves swiftly toward a big twist and the satisfying conclusion. This entry shows why Billingham stands at the forefront of British crime authors. Agent: David Forrer, Inkwell Management. (June) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

It takes a village to catch a cat killer, apparently. In this latest installment (after Love Like Blood) in the popular, award-winning, and well-crafted police procedural series featuring DI Tom Thorne, a flurry of ritualistic cat murders set off alarm bells for the authorities who suspect a serial killer might be honing his technique, or is possibly just in cooling off mode. In the camaraderie of the workplace, there are lots of jokes about the investigation, dubbed Operation Felix. While the cat killings become primarily Thorne's province, his colleague Nicola Tanner is assigned a case concerning the spread of a powerful synthetic drug. The whole panoply of characters are fully fleshed out: the upper echelon of the police, all as obsequious as Basil Fawlty; the culprits ranging from thugs to the shape-shifting, drug-dispensing but intriguing Duchess; and the domestic partners of the principals. The resolution is purr-fect. Verdict Billingham has experience writing for television, and his novels practically cry out for adaptation, to be placed alongside such hit series as Prime Suspect, DCI Banks, Scott and Bailey, and his earlier novels-Sleepyhead among others-that have been adapted for the small screen. [See Prepub Alert, 12/11/17.]-Bob Lunn, Kansas City, MO © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

One of DI Tom Thorne's most harrowing cases begins with evidence that someone's taken to slaughteringcats."Tomicide?" Thorne's boss, DCI Russell Brigstocke, wonders if the Homicide squad should rename itself after it's asked to investigate the gruesome deaths of at least 15 cats throughout greater London. Since butchering animals is, along with wetting the bed and setting fires, one of the classic symptoms of a nascent serial killer, the powers that be are worried that someone is preparing for a more serious spate of felonies. But consulting psychiatrist Dr. Melita Perera plants a still more disturbing seed in Thorne's head: What if, instead of working up to homicide, the cat killer is actually cooling down in between human murders? As soon as Thorne and DI Nicola Tanner, back on the job after her partner's own murder (Love Like Blood, 2017), start to look for unsolved cases, an unnervingly large number of possibilities leap out: retired librarian Patricia Somersby, Bristol University student Annette Mangan, Norwich physician Leila Fadel, all of them strangled by an unknown person who remains at largenot to mention Alice Matthews, a victim who's still cooling in the mortuary. In addition to spearheading Operation Felix, Thorne and Tanner must also decide whether city trader Andrew Evans, recently released from prison after his distracted driving claimed the life of a boy he ran down, can possibly be innocent in the fatal shooting of Adnan Jandali, like Evans a drug addict hopelessly in debt to his suppliers, despite the mountain of evidence against him. The main feature the two cases seem to share is an endless tangle of false leads. Will they converge in some more spectacular fashion?The unusual premise will hook you, but it's Billingham's patience and persuasiveness in unfolding its grim details that will keep you reading long past the hour when all cats are gray. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Award-winning British crime writer Billingham gives us another spin with Tom Thorne, whose investigation of several animal killings leads to a serial killer even as DI Nicola Tanner tracks the emergence of a dangerous new drug.

It takes a village to catch a cat killer, apparently. In this latest installment (after Love Like Blood) in the popular, award-winning, and well-crafted police procedural series featuring DI Tom Thorne, a flurry of ritualistic cat murders set off alarm bells for the authorities who suspect a serial killer might be honing his technique, or is possibly just in cooling off mode. In the camaraderie of the workplace, there are lots of jokes about the investigation, dubbed Operation Felix. While the cat killings become primarily Thorne's province, his colleague Nicola Tanner is assigned a case concerning the spread of a powerful synthetic drug. The whole panoply of characters are fully fleshed out: the upper echelon of the police, all as obsequious as Basil Fawlty; the culprits ranging from thugs to the shape-shifting, drug-dispensing but intriguing Duchess; and the domestic partners of the principals. The resolution is purr-fect. Verdict Billingham has experience writing for television, and his novels practically cry out for adaptation, to be placed alongside such hit series as Prime Suspect, DCI Banks, Scott and Bailey, and his earlier novels—Sleepyhead among others—that have been adapted for the small screen. [See Prepub Alert, 12/11/17.]—Bob Lunn, Kansas City, MO (c) Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

A spate of cat deaths propels Billingham's intriguing 15th novel featuring London Det. Insp. Tom Thorne (after 2017's Love like Blood). Assigned to the case, Thorne hates the ridicule that comes with it, until he discovers that the cats are connected to a group of unsolved murders. Since the investigation requires database searches and organizing information, tasks that aren't this rule-breaker's strength, he seeks the help of meticulous Det. Insp. Nicola Tanner, who had a major role in the previous book. Meanwhile, Tanner has her own case to solve: junkie Andan Jandali's murder. Thorne and Tanner team up and work both cases. Tanner's leads to a drug ring and a mysterious woman called the Duchess; Thorne's to a dating website where a serial killer hunts his victims. The stakes rise when a sting operation goes bad and puts Tanner in harm's way. Readers have a dizzying array of characters to keep track of, but the action moves swiftly toward a big twist and the satisfying conclusion. This entry shows why Billingham stands at the forefront of British crime authors. Agent: David Forrer, Inkwell Management. (June)