Ice Cold Heart

July 1, 2019
Anthony Award winner Tracy’s enjoyable 10th Monkeewrench novel (after 2018’s The Guilty Dead) finds Minneapolis police detectives Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth called to a particularly gruesome crime scene, where housewife Kelly Ramage has been bound, tortured, and asphyxiated. The victim was last seen alive at an exclusive art gallery featuring a controversial exhibition of images that Magozzi considers “glorified porn”; this leads him to wonder whether the art might be a catalyst for murder. Meanwhile, Grace McBride, Magozzi’s wife, and her partners at Monkeewrench Software are reworking the security platform for Bit Monster, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, which has recently been hit with a cyberattack that cost the exchange nearly $400 million. Another horrific death leads the detectives to believe they’re looking for a serial killer. Magozzi turns to the Monkeewrench crew for help following the killer’s online trail. Evidence emerges that suggests a link between the cyber theft and the murders. This smooth mix of police procedural and techno thriller offers likable characters and a complex, well-crafted plot. Tracy fans will be well satisfied. Agent: Ellen Geiger, Frances Goldin Literary.

Starred review from September 1, 2019

Winter is so cold in Minneapolis that the homicide detectives have had a reprieve for a month. But when Detectives Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth are called to a scene, it makes up for the recent quiet. Kelly Romage is found brutally slain in a friend's house. It doesn't appear to be a random killing because the married woman was secretly experimenting with bondage. As the men investigate, Kelly's story reveals that a self-proclaimed psychic who predicted her death might have been right. Then the psychic is found dead. The two women are linked through a third, a neighbor of Monkeewrench computer team member Roadrunner. Kelly is also connected to opening night of an explicit, graphic art exhibit. When Magozzi and Rolseth consult Monkeewrench, they find a tangled web that joins the worlds and leads back to Minneapolis and a savage killer. VERDICT The tenth Monkeewrench novel is as intense and fast paced as its predecessor, The Guilty Dead, and includes the best elements for crime fiction readers: an intricate plot weaving multiple story lines. Though the backstory is disturbing, fans of the compelling series will appreciate the focus on Roadrunner and a glimpse of his past.--Lesa Holstine, Evansville Vanderburgh P.L., IN

Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2019
In the depths of a frigid Minnesota winter, a woman is sadistically murdered in her friend's house. An assignation gone horribly wrong? As Detectives Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth dig, they uncover evidence that the dead woman was keeping some dark secrets from everyone who knew her, including her grieving husband. Because this is a Monkeewrench novel (the tenth in the series), Grace MacBride and her team of digital sleuths are soon enlisted to help Magozzi and Rolseth track down the murderer. Readers who've never sampled the series but who like their mysteries to focus on character as much as on plot should be steered in this book's direction. Needless to say, existing fans will be well pleased: the series might have reached double digits, but it's showing no signs of falling into a rut. More, please.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)