Shimmer

August 24, 2009
British author Norman's terrifying third thriller (after Last Run
) to feature African-American homicide detective Sam Becket introduces a memorable villain, Cal the Hater, a psychotic male prostitute whose demented “epistle” of his “joy-giving” exploits is one of the book's highlights. The discovery of the body of a young Asian man in a rowboat off South Beach puts Sam and his Cuban-American partner on the Miami Beach, Fla., police force on the killer's trail. As creepy as Hannibal Lecter, Cal (short for Caligula) strangles and/or stabs his victims, then uses bleach to cleanse the wounds. Sam gets a break when his friend Mildred Bleeker, a homeless woman, reports seeing an “angel of death” near the crime scene. Meanwhile, Sam's white wife, Grace, and her visiting sister must contend with their blackmailing stepbrother. Norman keeps the pace taut as the action builds to a shock-a-roo ending.

August 15, 2009
Detective Sam Becket (Ralph's Children, 2008, etc.) returns to protect Miami Beach from a mysterious and gruesome murderer.

Grace Becket's ever-expanding family is her number one priority. So when her sister Claudia shows up on her doorstep, she's thrilled even though the circumstances are less than ideal. At first Claudia tries to hide the truth, but eventually she comes clean to her sister about the recent infidelity that's made her vulnerable to blackmail. She thinks she'll feel safer hiding out in Miami Beach with Grace in spite of the city's recent crime wave. Meanwhile, Grace's husband, police detective Sam, is leading the investigation concerning a body found floating in a rowboat off the coast. The reliability of local homeless woman Mildred Bleeker, Sam's only lead in the case, is undermined by her fondness for Manischewitz. Bleeker claims to have seen a shimmering sliver stranger slinking around town. But she's unwilling to talk to anyone except Sam about her suspicions. Struggling to balance his investigation and the ever-increasing drama in his family, Sam must put everything on hold when Claudia's abrupt departure makes Grace suspect foul play. Though he leaves Grace to track down Claudia and make sure she's safe, he soon has to wonder which of the sisters is in greater danger and whether he'll be able to help or get trapped as well.

The characters may not be complex, but they're certainly easy to take. An enjoyable diversion that builds up some satisfying suspense.

(COPYRIGHT (2009) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

Starred review from July 1, 2009
For fans of heart-palpitating, nail-biting psychological thrillers, Normans latest (following Ralphs Children, 2008) will be just the ticket. Miami detective Sam Becket is back, this time in a case that is as gruesome as it is puzzling. An unidentified mans body is found in a rowboat, which is floating in the water off the beach. Sam and his partner, Martinez, are called to the scene, and despite being tough cops, they are shocked by the state of the mutilated body. When a second body is found just days later, similarly mutilated, Sam and Martinez figure they have a serial killer on their hands. Becket is as tough and canny as they come but likable and principled, too. Normans complex, terrifying, shock-a-minute plot, coupled with her ability to keep readers on the edges of their seats from first page to last and her skill at showing the dark underbelly of life in sunny Miami, makes this one a must-read page-turner. Recommend it to fans of Ridley Pearson and Chelsea Cain.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)