Cut to the Quick

October 29, 2007
Emley’s compelling follow-up to 2006’s The First Cut
finds homicide detective Nan Vining faced with a grisly double homicide in a Pasadena mansion. Physically but not psychologically healed from the vicious knife attack in The First Cut
, Vining questions Mark Scoville, the homeowner’s business partner, who’s cooperative at first. But when he suddenly clams up and asks for a lawyer, Vining’s suspicions deepen. Discovering recent calls between Scoville and ex-con Jack Jenkins, Vining wonders if Jenkins misinterpreted Scoville’s sour comments about his partner as an invitation to a classic criss-cross murder scheme. Complicating matters, a mute vagrant is arrested carrying disturbing drawings hinting at Vining’s previous attack, as well as pointing to other victims. As she struggles to piece together the Scoville case, Vining also steps up her obsessive, private search for her assailant, whom she now fears is a serial killer. The tease of this ongoing subplot is underdeveloped, though Emley skillfully juggles several other plot lines. Readers will look forward to seeing more of this edgy, unpredictable heroine.

Opening with the violent murder of Oliver Mercer, venture capitalist, CUT TO THE QUICK weaves the police investigation with a cold case involving the attempted murder of Pasadena Homicide Detective Nanette Vining. Carrington MacDuffie's melodious voice is perfect for Vining as she manipulates suspects and witnesses while seeking murderers and psychopaths. As Vining and her partner, Kissick, follow up leads, their prime suspect, Mercer's business partner, digs himself deeper into a self-made hell with self-delusion and escalating violence. MacDuffie's intonations and nuanced inflections bring out the various facets of each character. It's a story of good versus evil as the police hunt down the killers who hunt police. M.B.K. (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine