Kindred Spirits

April 24, 2017
In Bannister’s thoughtful fourth mystery featuring former government security analyst Gabriel Ash and Constable Hazel Best (after 2015’s Desperate Measures), Middle East native Rachid Iqbal, armed with a weaponized spray can, turns up in the English town of Wittering during the opening of the new Museum of the Crusades. Best is there to protect historian Oliver Ford, a TV personality who’s speaking at the event. When Iqbal approaches Ford, Best recognizes the danger and pushes Ford out of harm’s way. Ford later charms Best, and soon she’s in his thrall. Her faithful friend, Gerald Ash, and Saturday, the 17-year-old boy who boards at Best’s home, find Ford’s odd behavior suspect. Are their suspicions founded? Meanwhile, is Iqbal a terrorist, or was his attack more personal? This book can be enjoyed on its own, but those new to the series may wish to check out earlier entries to learn more about the principals, such as how the platonic friendship between Best and Ash evolved and what created the empathy and kindness that allowed Best to take in Saturday. Agent: Jane Gregory, Gregory & Company (U.K.).

June 1, 2017
A famous television personality, Oliver Ford, has come to the town of Norbold, England, to film a documentary about a new museum honoring Britain's role in the Crusades. A young Arab man turns up at the museum and, brandishing a homemade flame thrower, nearly kills Ford, whose life is saved by Detective Constable Hazel Best, who shoves him out of the way (and gets a nasty burn as a result). Questions abound: Is the young man a jihadist, out for revenge against Britain for the Crusades? Was the museum the target, or was it Ford himself? And will Hazel's developing personal relationship with Ford put her own life in jeopardy? This is the fourth in the Hazel Best and Gabriel Ash seriescostar Ash is a former government investigator whose own skills come in pretty handy hereand it's a cracking-good read. Whether you're a fan of the series or a newcomer, you'll be hooked from the get-go (and, since the book operates nicely as a stand-alone, familiarity with the previous books isn't a requirement).(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

August 1, 2018
Seventeen years earlier, during a bungled robbery, wealthy businessman Jerome Harbinger's wife and driver were killed. Deranged by grief, Harbinger threatened to kill not only the supposed killer, Edward Cho, but also Cho's entire family. Cho's two teenage children were forced to assume new identifies and flee the city. Even after 17 years, Harbinger is apparently still seeking revenge and will stop at nothing to find the two now-grown Cho siblings. Meanwhile, an apparent kidnap attempt on bookshop owner Gabriel Ash's nanny leads Ash's good friend, Police Constable Hazel Best, into making connections between that case and the still unresolved matter of Cho's children. Before long, Hazel finds herself involved in a tragedy of near-Shakespearean proportions. Aided by Hazel's boss, DI Dave Gorman, Gabriel and Hazel race against the clock to try to keep Harbinger from carrying out his final act of revenge. Bannister's cleverly plotted, gripping story offers an effective combination of straightforward procedural and suspense thriller. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)