Puppets

Starred review from June 1, 2005
Guitarist-turned-novelist Hecht explores the sinister side of science in this gripping prequel to his 1998 bestseller, " Skull Session" (1998). New York state police detective Mo Ford is in a funk: his relationship with his live-in girlfriend, Carla, has fallen apart, and a violent encounter with a 300-plus-pound assailant has him facing probation or worse. But the detective's investigative talents make up for his reputation as a rebel cop, and the local district attorney is willing to give him a second chance. The case is a doozy: catch a serial murderer who strings victims by their limbs, like puppets. It couldn't be the "Howdy Doody" killer, caught with the help of the FBI several years before, but could it be a copycat, or did they nab the wrong guy? As Ford peels back the layers of the case, he discovers disturbing truths about military mind-control experiments that turned enlisted men into killing machines. Detective Ford pairs up, professionally and romantically, with svelte psychologist Rebecca Ingalls, while his ex, an astrologist and psychic, has eerie premonitions about his demise. Hecht, who's also authored a second mystery series featuring Seattle parapsychologist Cree Black" ," delivers a first-rate thriller with a killer combination of wit, grit, and gore.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2005, American Library Association.)