Dead or Alive

August 29, 2016
Det. Insp. Septimus “Sep” Black, the hero of this middling series launch set in Yorkshire from McCoy (Mad Carew), is having a bad week. He’s convinced that a dirty cop has relocated just to bring him down, his estranged wife has accused him of beating her and won’t let him see their young daughter, a politician accused of child abuse has died while in his custody, and a powerful criminal has kidnapped two children. After a violent outburst in a bar, Sep asks for help and is sent to a psychiatric ward. He’s sure things can’t get worse, but they do, and when he’s released, he goes undercover to find those kids and clear his name. McCoy hits every note for a gritty procedural, including two sadistic henchmen that crack wise and kill with impunity, but this everything-but-the-kitchen-sink approach never rises above cliché, and the violence often feels gratuitous. Disjointed storytelling—Sep goes from just taking a break from his marriage to never really getting along with his wife in a hot minute—further mars this ho-hum effort.

October 1, 2016

The northern English city of Leeds is not London, but crime happens everywhere. DI Septimus Ruddigore Black knows the new detective on the force is bent; Lenny Cope fled London when an investigation was launched into his connections to local crime lord Vincent Formosa. When two children are kidnapped, the gangster's fingerprints are all over the action. Dead bodies begin to pile up as Formosa, who always seems to be a step ahead of the police, cleans house. Black is forced to resign after a suspect dies in custody. How will he be able to clear his name, restore his reputation, bring down Formosa, and regain his badge? VERDICT McCoy (Perseverance Street; "Sam Carew" mysteries) launches a new crime series featuring a prototypical British police officer who holds his cards close to the vest and doesn't allow anyone to get too close. The well-constructed narrative unfolds in an entertaining manner. A solid choice for Peter Robinson and Reginald Hill fans.

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2016
McCoy offers his take on a familiar crime-fiction character: the policeman or ex-policeman with a chaotic private life and an overenthusiastic manner on the job. The troubled cop here is Detective Inspector Sep Black of the West Yorkshire Police, sacked after an obnoxious, boozed-up politician dies in his custody. Black's scheme for getting his job back requires suspension of disbelief: he disguises himself as a lowlife and offers to snitch for the cop who helped can him. Fortunately, the author notes with a slug of irony, Black's redemption is helped by kidnapping and white-slavery schemes. McCoy tells his tale with great dashplus plenty of tension and violenceand he brightens it with doses of English-major wit. Black and a therapist discuss Hamlet, a pipe-smoking prostitute wises him up on Socrates, and Black goes through his day reflecting on Woody Guthrie. And his interrogation methods, described in some detail, are fun to watch. Dealing with lowlifes and being honest never work together, he says at one point, requiring one to Tell the truth to start. Lie later. Familiar, yes, but satisfying, too.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)